


Azumanga Gaming!

by MetaDash



Category: Azumanga Daioh
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-07
Updated: 2018-08-02
Packaged: 2018-09-30 12:49:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 26
Words: 38,990
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10163384
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MetaDash/pseuds/MetaDash
Summary: One study trip to Chiyo-chan's house reveals that the prodigy has a small - and potentially promising - experience with vidya, so Tomo and the others take it upon themselves to show her the highs and lows of all kinds of games! Enjoy the gamer fun, rage, no-scoping, and more with the whole gang. One game per chapter, and chapters are drabble-esque in length. (Originally posted on FF.net in 2015, but it was deleted. Consider it a revival.)





	1. Super Mario Bros.

"We're going to Chiyo-chan's house! We're going to Chi-"

"Tomo." Yomi sighed and put her hand to her forehead. "Can you stop repeating that? You're starting to give me a headache. More than usual, that is."

"Hehe…" The wildcat grinned and turned to her best friend. "Can ya blame me, Yomi? We're lucky enough to be friends with a girl with a super COOL house!"

"We're going there to study. Right, Osaka?"

The addressed girl in question blinked for a moment, and cocked her head. "Study? I thought we were gonn' hit up Chiyo-chan's beach house."

Another hand.

"It's _October,_ Osaka."

"Well, that's why it sounded fishy."

"WE'RE HERE!"

Tomo wasted no time in dashing towards the front gates, Yomi being too tired to stop her. What happened next would change everything….

XXXXX

"Oh….come on…"

Chiyo Mihama sighed as the familiar jingle of the life lost rang through her ears for what felt like the hundredth time that day.

The prodigy adjusted her strap and looked towards her companion.

"Oh, I'm on my last life Mr. Tadakichi. I can't lose this time!"

Chiyo only heard a bark in response. Naturally the dog wanted her to win as much as his owner did, the little scamp.

"Come on, Mr. Mario. We can save the princess!"

The plumber dashed forward and dodged a few fireballs, nearly slipping into the lava below.

"Kyah! Nonono….."

"Hi, Chiyo-chan! Let's-"

Chiyo shrieked as Mario slipped and hit the lava, falling into his defeated stance. The young girl could only whimper as she heard the Game Over sound for the fifth time that day.

"What the….?"

Chiyo turned and shrieked again, this time falling off the couch and hitting her head. To her surprise, her friends Yomi, Tomo, and Osaka had entered the room.

"Video games, Chiyo?" Yomi raised an eyebrow.

"It's not what it looks like! I-I….uh…..you s-see…."

"Sweet!"

Tomo wasted no time in jumping over the couch and grabbing the Wiimote from Chiyo's hand.

"I can beat this game, no problem!"

Osaka hummed and sat down next to Tomo. "Oh, that's Mario! I always wondered….is he Japanese?"

"What?" Tomo grunted as she began 1-1. "He's Italian, duh."

"Yeah but…..Nintendo is Japanese, ain't it?"

"Oh no!" Chiyo got to her feet and shook her head. "I'm so sorry for not letting you in! Please, let me get all you some drinks…."

"It's fine, Chiyo-chan," Yomi assured the girl. "Tomo, we didn't come here to play video games!"

Tomo cheered as she cleared the first flag of the game, pumping a fist.

"Oh relax, Yomi, video games are fun! And when's the last time we ever saw Chiyo-chan play one?"

Chiyo turned red and covered her face.

"I…..I don't have too many…..but I just wanted….to beat this game…."

"WHAT?!" Tomo laughed as she sped Mario through the caverns of 1-2. "Super Mario Bros. is like the game every person on the planet has beaten!"

Osaka squinted and looked at the other games on Chiyo's shelf. True to her words, Chiyo only had a Wii console, with a few titles. Wii Sports, Mario Kart Wii….the game Tomo was playing had to be a virtual console title.

"Say…..what video games do _you_ have, Tomo-chan?"

"Me?" Tomo cursed – much to Yomi's anger – at shrinking due to a goomba tap. "Tons! Have this too, but not for Wii. I actually have my dad's old Famicom! Cool, huh?"

"Wow…."

"Tomo! You're not going to play this game the whole day! I'm sorry, Chiyo, she-"

Chiyo was watching in amazement.

"Tomo…can you beat this game?"

"Well, yeah. I told you, it's easy."

"Please do it! I…..I won't be able to concentrate…..that losing music….it always makes me so…sad…."

Yomi sighed and sat down next to Osaka, placing a hand on Chiyo's shoulder.

"It's okay, Chiyo. This game frustrated me when I was 11 too."

Chiyo spun around and looked at Yomi in tears.

"Ah! I mean-!"

"Say Tomo, can I play when you lose?" asked Osaka.

Tomo glanced at the screen as she warp skipped to world 4. She hadn't lost a life yet.

"Yeah, whatever. Chiyo-chan, I hope you're ready. Cause we're gonna show you tons of awesome video games, and you're gonna play every single one!"

"Wow….." Chiyo sniffed and wiped away her tears. "That sounds….fun!"

Yomi sighed again, but she couldn't help but smile at the joyous look on her friend's face.

_Tomo…..you're such a goofball._

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next game - Pokemon Heart Gold/Soul Silver


	2. Pokemon Heart Gold/Soul Silver

The next day, things continued normally for the girls. Eventually they did mention to get some studying done (but Chiyo wanted to try out warp skipping). Per the usual morning, Chiyo walked to school with Sakaki. The tall girl couldn't help but notice the happy humming on the pigtailed genius.

"Chiyo-chan…..you seem extra happy today." Sakaki smiled. Seeing Chiyo in a good mood always gave her one too.

"It's such a beautiful morning, Miss Sakaki! And well…..I had lots of fun yesterday with the others…."

"Oh, right. I'm sorry I couldn't make it your house for studying, but um…something came up."

"Oh, don't worry! Tomo showed me a lot."

Sakaki immediately stopped in her tracks.

_Uh….. **Tomo** was the one to show her things?_

* * *

When the two entered Yukari's class, a few students had already showed up. More tellingly, Osaka was in her seat, struggling with something.

"Ah…no, that's not it. Oh…..ah! Dang it, not more Zubats…."

"Good morning! Miss Osaka, you're early."

Osaka glanced up and smiled at Chiyo.

"Howdy, Chiyo-chan, Miss Sakaki. Don't mind me…."

Sakaki realized Osaka was fiddling with a Nintendo DS. The music sounded so familiar, even though it was low….

"Ah! Nuts! These Zubats sure are a pain…."

"Oh, you brought a game to school! May I ask what it is?"

Osaka nodded and ejected the game card and holding it up to Chiyo.

**Pokemon Soul Silver**

_Pokemon!_

Sakaki blushed and covered her mouth. She secretly loved cute things, so it was no surprise Pokemon was one of her favorite series. She never forgot the first time she saw a Pikachu on television…

"Oh…..I think I've heard of that series before. You raise animals, right?"

"Kinda. These animals fight, Chiyo-chan. Hehehe…." Osaka looked down and started to panic. "What! My screen! What happened….?!"

"You ejected the game, Miss Osaka. You did save, right?"

Osaka whimpered and dropped her DS, and then her head, to her desk.

"N-No…..I was playing since I got up….dang it…."

Sakaki and Chiyo looked sorry for the poor Osakan girl, although another thought entered the former's mind…

_Maybe…..would Chiyo-chan and Osaka want to….n-no…._

Her thoughts ended when Tomo and Yomi entered, followed by a groggy Yukari to begin the school day.

XXXXX

When lunchtime came, Sakaki found Osaka desperately trying again.

"Come on….oh man, nothing's happening the same way…."

"Osaka."

Osaka blinked and looked up.

"Phew! Thought it was Miss Yukari 'bout to scold me. What's up, Miss Sakaki?"

"Do you…need some help?"

"Huh? You play video games, too?"

Osaka glanced over at Tomo, who was talking about many different games to Chiyo, who was listening very intently.

"…..every now and then. You're playing Pokemon, right…..?"

"Sure am!"

Sakaki's eyes widened slightly when Osaka turned her screens to the girl. She was stuck in the Ice Path, a section that she remembered as being slightly cumbersome. But her team….

_She plays differently than I do…._

Osaka only did not nickname any of her Pokemon (a constant fixture every time Sakaki began a new game), her choices were…..not what Sakaki would choose.

_Magneton, Gengar, Gyarados….Steelix and….Muk?_

"Cool, huh?

"….yes. I can get you out of this place, if you like?"

"Yes ma'am!"

Osaka handed the system to Sakaki with a big smile.

"That Pokemon?"

Sakaki turned and saw Tomo and Chiyo (Yomi was in the bathroom) approach.

"Osaka, you dummy. Why are you playing a version from 2010?"

"Johto's the best, Tomo. Can't say I really follow the newer games."

Sakaki nearly wanted to drop the system in shock.

_But you can PET your Pokemon there!_

"Miss Sakaki, do you play any video games?"

"Um…a few. Why do you ask, Chiyo-chan?"

"Ha! I helped Chiyo-chan beat Super Mario Bros., AKA the easiest game ever-"

Chiyo pouted and gave a "hmph".

"-yesterday when we were studying! And now I'm gonna show Chiyo tons of cool video games! Can you believe she only had a Wii?!"

Sakaki blushed slightly. The Wii was a birthday present when she was younger, but she adored it.

"Can I…..I mean…..can I show you games too, Chiyo?"

"Of course, Miss Sakaki!"

"I wonder what you like to play," Osaka wondered.

Tomo smiled. _Probably hardcore games like Metal Gear and Doom or something._

Sakaki smiled. _Animal Crossing, Pokemon, Kirby…_

Things were about to get much more intensive…

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next game - Mario Party 3


	3. Mario Party 3

The rain was coming down slightly hard when the doorbell rang at the Takino house. Tomo rushed to open it.

"Hello, everyone! Welcome to my wonderful abode…"

"Tomo, I hope you asked your parents before inviting us over."

"It's not a problem Yomi…." Tomo watched as Chiyo, Sakaki, Osaka, and Yomi all took off their shoes, Chiyo resting her umbrella by the door. "I mean you're allowed to come over whenever, so it should work the same for you guys."

"Sigh…."

"So we should probably get started as soon as possible," Chiyo said. "So we can have more time to play!"

"What? Come on, can't we just all copy off Yomi tomorrow morning?"

"NO."

"I was kidding, you know. Are you sure you want to do this, Chiyo-chan?"

"We can't start slacking off, Tomo."

"Fine! Half of our work now, a game or two, then the rest?"

"Well….okay."

Sakaki and Osaka were both mesmerized by the Takino living room. It was surprisingly clean and tidy.

"Come on, girls! The gaming experience of the century awaits us!"

Chiyo and Yomi both glared at Tomo.

"….a-after some schoolwork. Geez…."

XXXXX

An hour later, the girls were in Tomo's room, who just took off a console from the shelf.

"I think we should start small, just in case. Something fun and easy."

"Oooh….ain't that a Nintendo 64?"

"Sure is!"

"Tomo, if you organized your notes half as much as you do your video games, I'm sure you'd get better grades."

"Meh, too much work," the wildcat said as she picked a game and put in the console.

Sakaki read the label. "Mario Party 3?"

"Yep! Mario's the best way to try other games, since he's in everything. And we're going with my personal favorite and best!"

"A party sounds fun!" Chiyo giggled.

"One problem, Tomo. There's only four controller slots," Yomi pointed out.

"Oh….right. Well Chiyo has to play, and I have to be there too! It's my game!"

Yomi groaned.

"And it's rare to see Miss Sakaki playing something so she's in too! That leaves you or Osaka."

Osaka looked uneasy as she looked at the game label.

"Count me out. I ain't no good in luck games."

"Come on! It's more skill than luck, that's just a myth!" Tomo passed a controller to Chiyo and Sakaki, before handing one to Yomi.

"You just don't want to me play because I can beat you, Tomo. You're a very sore loser at this game."

"THATS FIGHTING WORDS!"

Eventually the game started up, with Tomo selecting the Party Mode (she was player 1, naturally.) When it came time to the characters….

"I guess Mario. He's the everyman, like me!"

"Not even close." Yomi thought for a minute. "I suppose Donkey Kong."

"Oh nice, he's an ape just like yo-

Yomi smacked Tomo (lightly) with the controller.

"Ummm…..well. It'll be nice to be the princess this time instead of saving her." Chiyo selected Princess Peach.

"I'll pick Yoshi." Sakaki nodded, content with her choice.

The board began with Chilly Waters (Tomo: "I'll go easy on you all and pick the easiest board"), a snow covered haven. Everyone rolled their dye block.

**Mario – 2**

**Donkey Kong – 8**

**Peach – 10**

**Yoshi – 5**

"What? I'm **last**! No fair!"

"Told you. Tomo, you can't even take losing the _turn order_ well."

"I'm first….wow, I keep rolling the dice block, right?" Chiyo asked.

"That's the jist of it." Yomi nodded.

Chiyo nodded back and pressed the A button, earning 4 movement spaces and a 3 coin bonus.

"Oh! I'm in the first place now!"

"Not for long…." Tomo grumbled.

Yomi rolled her dye and Donkey Kong moved 10 spaces, going past the bank space. 5 coins were lost, but three were gained back.

"Alright I guess."

With Sakaki's roll, Yoshi went further than Peach but right before the bank space. To the tall girl's surprise, a hidden block came out, earning her a star.

"Oh…."

"WHAT the hell! This game's cheating already?!"

"Told ya! It's just luck…." Osaka shook her head as Chiyo congratulated Sakaki.

Tomo growled and slammed the A button on her roll, moving only two tiles past the start and into a red spot. She lost three coins.

"OH COME ON!"

"Do we have quit playing already?" Yomi asked sarcastically, as the game launched into one of its signature minigames.

XXXXX

Seven turns later, Osaka was watching the screen with interest, helping herself to a couple of rice crackers.

Sakaki was still in first place, having that one star lead but not too many coins.

Tomo had managed to shoot back up to second place, thanks to determination at not wanting to lose. She had 89 coins but was the furthest from the star.

Chiyo was in third place, with 56 coins and a few items.

Yomi was in last, due to not winning too many minigames.

Both girls were very close to the star.

"Best of luck, Yomi," Chiyo said with a smile. It really was impossible for Chiyo to trash-talk people (unlike a certain wildcat). With her roll, she only moved one space, but she uncovered Boo the ghost in the middle of the movement. "Oh…..hmm, should I ask for his services? Hmm…."

Tomo's jaw dropped as Chiyo selected no, politely thanking the virtual ghost.

"What! Chiyo, you could've used that to _steal_ someone's coins! Heck, you could've stolen Sakaki's star!"

"But I couldn't do that." A frown. "That wouldn't be very nice, would it?"

"Ah, Chiyo-chan is too pure for this game, I reckon," Osaka said.

Tomo sighed and facepalmed. "I think we should play Mario Kart next."

"Please do. I'll look forward to your mom yelling at you for throwing the TV through the window in anger," Yomi said plainly.

"That was ONE time! Just roll, Yomi!"

Donkey Kong moved through Boo just like Peach, only this time she (naturally) picked yes.

"I wonder who Yomi will steal from…." Osaka's eyes widened slightly.

To only Osaka's surprise, it was Tomo.

"ARGH!"

XXXX

Only one turn remained in the game. Yomi had managed to shoot up to first place, but Tomo was (still) neck and neck in second place, both managing to get stars. Chiyo had gotten one too, but she still had less coins than Sakaki, who really wasn't playing hard either way.

_At least the music is nice…._

Tomo eyed the screen and tapped her chin.

"Hurry up Tomo, so we can finish this already. We should do some more homework before we go home."

"Fine fine, but I'm thinking here! It's my last turn….and everyone went already…."

No one was close to the next star, and especially not Tomo. She had a golden mushroom, but she didn't trust the dice rolls.

_Hmmm…..wait, wait!_

Tomo selected an item she got from a hidden block space. It resembled a Shy Guy, but it was a golden token.

"Eat this, Yomi!"

With a press, she summoned Game Guy.

"What?!"

"OH MAI GOD!" Osaka jumped and slid to the door. "The ultimate luck challenge…..he's too strong, Yomi! Ya gotta give up!"

"No way! If Tomo wants to play dirty, then I'll just fight back!"

Osaka whimpered and pointed to the screen.

"It's the roulette challenge! That's too hard!"

Different Mario characters had a place on a roulette wheel, each with a unique coin multiplier. Considering all of Yomi's coins had to be used as payment…

"Oh screw it. Might as well risk it."

**X64**

"The smallest piece…..Yomi, are you sure?" Sakaki asked. Even Tomo was spooked.

"Yeah. This game is getting boring now, and I'm sure we're all sick of it."

Game Guy spun the wheel and did his signature dance…..eventually, the music slowed, and slowly…..slowly…the piece moved….until…..

**Donkey Kong Wins!**

Osaka was shocked.

Chiyo was speechless.

Sakaki was amazed.

And Tomo promptly fainted.

"Well….then. While she's knocked out, let's just go back to work then."

"Okay, Miss Yomi! That sure was a lot of fun!"

"Mm-hmm."

The three girls got up and exited Tomo's room, but Osaka turned to Yomi.

"Wait! There's still the last roll for Tomo! And the minigame…"

"It doesn't matter, Osaka. She's not reaching the star and I have 999 coins. I won, she lost, that's it."

"Well…..okay then."

Osaka turned the game off and followed Yomi out.

Little did the girls would know, Yomi might've not won. After all, there's always bonus stars to turn the tide.

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next game - Tetris (just posting what I wrote already...)


	4. Tetris

"I still can't believe you turned the game off!" Tomo groaned.

"Miss Yomi told me to. I guess there was no point." Osaka said, taking out her books for the school day.

"No point?! Chiyo's first multiplayer bash should've been completed, Osaka! I can't even count it!"

"Count it?"

Tomo took out a thick journal, and flipped to the first page. **Mario Party 3** was the first entry on the rest of the blank sheet of paper.

"Wow! How many games is Chiyo-chan gonna play?"

"As many as we can fit in our high school career. The sky's the limit, Osaka!"

"Hey!"

The two girls turned to see Kagura, who had been out sick for the last few days.

"How's it been, you two? I miss anything cool?"

"Nah. We've been just playing some video games."

"What? Well that's cool in my book!"

"Yeah, we caught Chiyo playing Super Mario Bros. a few days ago. Her game collection was so small!"

Next to Kagura, Chiyo blushed and frowned at Tomo.

"Please stop phrasing it like that…..you're making it seem like I'm doing something…..dirty…."

"Chiyo-chan, you're interested in some video games?"

"Oh!" The class president's expression turned bright again. "Yes, I am! You want to play with us, too?"

"Heh! I got quite the collection myself. Any genres you like in particular?"

"Well….I guess I like the easier stuff….nothing too flashy or intense."

"Hmm…feh!" Kagura smirked and waved her hand dismissively. "That's the problem with today's youth. Always taking the simple way out. C'mon, Chiyo-chan, you're a genius. There's probably plenty of games you can beat without trying!"

"Oh I wouldn't say that. I didn't play a lot of these games when I was growing up….my parents and I mostly played board games."

Tomo cringed.

"Hmmm….." Kagura thought for a minute. "There's so many classics….you've played Mario, right? How about this….?" she searched her bag before finding a Gameboy. She passed it to Chiyo. "I play this game from time to time when I'm bored."

Chiyo thanked Kagura and curiously took the device, turning it on….eventually she was met with the start screen for a version of Tetris.

"Wow! That sure is a classic all right." Osaka smiled.

"Really Kagura? You're giving Chiyo-chan one of the dullest games in existence?"

Kagura scoffed. "Yeah right. Look! She's playing it."

True to her words, Chiyo was already engrossed in the game, having cleared one line. Her fingers moved quickly in tapping the D-pad, and her eyes were firmly locked on the screen.

"Puzzle games…..no wonder Chiyo-chan would be a whiz at that."

"But there's no point!" Tomo pouted. "The game only ends when you fill the screen. You can't beat anything!"

"So what? Not every game is competitive."

"WHAT?! You're the one who's always competing with Miss Sakaki! Maybe the two of you should duke it out, Street Fighter style!"

"Um…..I don't like fighting games…." Sakaki said quietly from her desk.

"Alright class! It's time to begin already, so everyone sit down."

Yukari started to write a few things on the board, but stopped in her tracks.

_What the hell…..is that tapping?_

The homeroom teacher spun around and scanned her class. Usually it was Tomo causing some kind of ruckus this early in the morning, but the wildcat mouthed the words "it wasn't me!"

"Ah yes! I got to the next level!" Chiyo said happily.

"Um….Chiyo-chan?" Osaka whispered nervously.

"Yes?"

Chiyo looked up and yelped, having locked her eyes onto Yukari's unamused face. She snatched the Gameboy from the girl's hands.

"I'm disappointed in you, Chiyo! Playing video games…..for once, I can't yell at Tomo!"

"HEY!" Tomo growled and pointed at Kagura. "It was HER game!"

"HEY! Don't drag me into this!"

"I'm s-so sorry….Miss Yukari…."

Yukari couldn't help but frown at Chiyo's face. The poor girl looked close to outright bawling. And no one in the class liked seeing the Class President cry.

"Look, relax, okay? You can get it later. Just don't do it again, okay?"

Frantic nods from the girl.

Yukari blanched at the sight of the screen. _Tetris?! This is serious…_

* * *

Minamo Kurosawa would find her friend (and unwilling partner in crime) in the teacher's lounge at lunch time.

"Hey. ….What's the matter, Yukari? You not sleep ten hours this morning?"

"Save your jokes, Nyamo. Let me ask you something. What do the cool kids play these days?"

"Huh? I guess…baseball?"

"No!" Yukari crossed her arms. "I'm not talking about sports – figured the gym teacher in you would jump to that – but _video games_."

"How would I know? I don't really play-"

"Liar! I know you still have a huge backlist in your closet. If I recall, you were the one who begged me to help you beat Ocarina of Time all of those years ago!"

Nyamo blushed and scowled. "What is your point, Yukari?"

"I caught Chiyo-chan – the smartest person In my class – playing THIS!"

The gym teacher stared at the screen.

"Oh wow. Chiyo was playing a video game? That's not like her….Tomo or Osaka would be more likely to do that."

"Again you're missing the point, Nyamo." Yukari groaned. "It is Tetris, aka the game for someone's grandpa! I thought my students had more style! More ambition! More…hope!"

Now it was Nyamo's turn to groan.

"So what? It would magically be okay if Chiyo was playing Persona or Kingdom Hearts or something like that?"

Yukari smirked.

"N-Not that I even play games like that!"

"Mark my words, Nyamo. This is not the end! In fact….it is just the beginning!"

Yukari paused and started to fiddle with the game, starting up a round for herself.

"I thought this game was too uncool for you?"

"So what, I want to beat the high score! You wanna play winner?"

Nyamo turned around in case anyone was watching, then eagerly sat down next to Yukari.

"You bet."

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next game - Super Monkey Ball 2 (and that's what I have so far.)
> 
> I suppose I'll jump around from different titles, but I don't want to jump to all of the overplayed games (Undertale, FnaF, stuff like that) so quickly. Let me know what you guys think, or if you have some suggestions. It's all short fun with the Azumanga gang.
> 
> Although you can bet I'm making someone play Huniepop.


	5. Super Monkey Ball 2

Later that day, Sakaki would find Chiyo walking with her pet dog, Mr. Tadakichi. The sun was beginning to set, but the girl couldn't help but notice how down Chiyo looked.

"Chiyo?"

"Hm? Oh! Good evening, Miss Sakaki!"

Two bows.

"What brings you around?"

"Oh….it just seemed like a nice time to take a walk outside, watch the birds….the cats…."

"The cats?"

"Um-! What I meant was-"

"Yes, it is a good day today. At least now…."

"Are you still upset over this morning?"

Chiyo stepped closer to allow Sakaki pet her dog. "Well…..I felt embarrassed. Seeing a teacher – even Miss Yukari – scold me…..maybe it's not a good idea to play video games so much. I got carried away…"

"Don't feel so bad, Chiyo-chan," Sakaki replied in a gentle tone. "You were only curious….besides, it would take a million video games to lower _your_ grades."

Chiyo giggled and blushed. "Thank you. But I really should be more careful. I shouldn't let it get in the way of my studies either way."

Sakaki nodded and scratched Mr. Tadakichi's ears.

"Yes. I….um….I only play at home, and when I finish my homework."

"Oh, that's right! I've seen you play a game before….I wonder…."

"You could come over if you like."

"Oh no!" Chiyo shook her head. "I wouldn't want to impose in any way."

"It's fine. My parents are out and won't return until tomorrow….but if you have something else to do…."

"Well…." Chiyo thought. "I already finished my homework, and we don't live too far away…..well, okay. Please, Miss Sakaki."

Sakaki nodded and led the girl onward.

Inwardly the tall girl was excited and nervous. Unlike Chiyo or Tomo, she never had visitors over before, and that was because she would have to hide literally everything in her room, stuffed animals included.

But Chiyo was Chiyo, and arguably the friend Sakaki felt the most comfortable around. She was kind, polite, and never judgmental in the slightest. Even better, her cute dog was with her.

Sakaki sighed in contentment. _Maybe this will be really fun._

* * *

Eventually, Sakaki opened up the door, and allowed Chiyo and her dog to step in.

"Wow….!"

Sakaki's house was not too big, but it was very well-organized and well-kept. Pictures adorned the walls.

"Mayaa, I'm home."

Chiyo gasped with delight as the striped cat came out into the room and stopped in front of the pair. He looked pleased to see Sakaki.

"Hello Mayaa! Mr. Tadakichi and I are just visiting…."

Mayaa looked cautious from Chiyo's extended hand, but a nod from Sakaki inspired him to shake it with his paw.

"Amazing! You've taught him so much….."

"Yes." Sakaki smiled and petted the iromote cat, earning several purrs. "At least when I leave my parents' home one day, he can be more open. It's slightly hard to keep hiding him…."

"Oh! Won't Mr. Tadakichi leave hair around? That's not good for your parents….."

"He can sit on a towel. Come, my room is this way."

When Chiyo caught sight of Sakaki's room, she was speechless. Several stuffed animals were on her bed, and many posters (Pokemon, Animal Crossing, etc.) were on the walls. She even saw a few stickers.

"Wow! This room is so cool!"

Sakaki gasped slightly as Mayaa scurried to her bed.

"Cool….? But…it's not weird?"

"Huh?" Chiyo looked puzzled. "Why would it be weird? You like so many fun and interesting things. My room is so plain compared to yours!"

Sakaki bit her lip as she walked over to her closet.

"Chiyo-chan….may I ask you a question?"

"Certainly." Chiyo answered. She put the towel down for Mr. Tadakichi to sit, and he licked Chiyo's face in love.

"Am….do I…*sigh* I feel as if everyone in our school thinks of me as this super-cool, mysterious tough girl. But I'm not…."

Chiyo watched as Sakaki began to set up her Gamecube.

"If everyone knew….I liked…..um…..cuter things, I don't think they would be willing to talk to me."

"What! That's not right at all! I would still talk to you, as would Osaka, Tomo, Yomi, Kagura…"

Sakaki's face fell slightly at two of those names. _Tomo and Kagura too? But they're the ones that hype me up in the first place…_

"We're your friends, and we like you no matter what you're into. And if the class wouldn't like that…well….that's their problem!"

"C-Chiyo…"

"Miss Sakaki, listen. I….I've always liked you since I started high school. You're so big, but so kind all the same. I wish people took me as seriously as they take you."

Sakaki shook her head and passed a controller to Chiyo.

"You don't want to be me, Chiyo. My height and bust size only adds to the attention everyone gives me. I'd rather be like you."

"But why?"

Sakaki turned the game on and thought for a minute.

Obviously she thought Chiyo was a very cute girl, but that was only half of the story. Chiyo was adored for being _herself,_ not what everyone perceived her to be: someone smart, someone honest, and someone who was willing to befriend anyone.

"You're true to yourself, Chiyo. Does that make sense?"

"Um….I think so."

Chiyo's eyes caught sight of the title screen.

"Ooh….this looks fun!"

"I think this is something we can both enjoy. It's a relaxing game, but it can be challenging and it involves puzzle solving."

"Sounds great!"

Mr. Tadakichi laid down and watched the screen with a lazy interest, content his master was happy. Mayaa walked over and jumped onto Sakaki's shoulder, who was petted in return.

The game was called **Super Monkey Ball 2**. A colorful and friendly looking monkey seemed to be the mascot of the whole shebang.

"So…how do you play?"

"I'll show you."

Sakaki opened up a practice level, selecting the young Baby. With a push of the control stick, the character in his ball began to roll forward.

"Oh wow!"

"You're supposed to reach the goal before time runs out. See the little bomb there?"

Chiyo nodded. "Yes, I think I understand! May I try the next level?"

"Certainly."

XXXXX

Sakaki watched in fascination. The beginner level was cleared in about ten minutes, and Chiyo was speeding through the advanced level like it was no problem.

"This game is amazing! The physics are really well-tuned, and it encourages not to lose your pace!"

"…."

"Oh! Did you want a turn, Miss Sakaki?"

"Chiyo….if you're this good, then we need to put your skills to the test."

"What? What do you mean?"

"I mean…." the tall girl's eyes narrowed. "This game is very difficult. I've been stuck on the story mode for….six months."

"Wow…..w-well, if you have that much faith in me…"

One menu shuffling later, Sakaki brought Chiyo to her place – world 6. An upside triangle marked the level selection, with the dancing monkey from the title (Aiai) over each choice.

"There's only three to choose from…."

"Yes, you can approach them in any order."

6-3 was **Opera** : the path was organized into descending rings, where the perimeter was narrow and easy for Aiai to fall. Chiyo focused hard on the screen.

"Here we go…."

You can do it, Chiyo-chan. I believe it in you.

She, Mayaa, and Mr. Tadakichi all looked pitying when Chiyo let out a shriek upon falling the first place, but she retired and soldiered on.

XXXXX

"NO! Not again!" the genius nearly banged her head with the controller. "I'm sorry, Miss Sakaki, but I just don't think I can do it! I've tried, and I've tried but-"

"C-Chiyo…."

"What?"

Before them was the last level gauntlet of the game, of world 10. Specifically, Chiyo only had one level left – 10-5, or **3D Maze.** However….

"Y-You've cleared four worlds and over 40 levels in just….three hours…."

"Goodness you're right! Mr. Tadakichi and I should get home!" Chiyo stood up as her dog sauntered over. "May we come over tomorrow and finish?"

"Oh…." Sakaki was surprised. "But there's other games you and I could play…."

"That sounds wonderful! Maybe we'll come back to it another day. Thank you, Miss Sakaki."

Just then, Mayaa wandered over to the plug, and with his curious cat tendencies, """accidentally""" made it come out of the wall socket, turning the game off.

"…"

"…."

"…..." Chiyo's expression was a cheerful blank, as if her soul had been ripped away.

"T-There's an auto-save feature. You only have to replay world 10!"

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next game - Sonic the Hedgehog (Genesis, GBA+Original)


	6. Sonic the Hedgehog

"Yukari, dear….it's time to get up."

The sensei of the Azumanga girls opened a tired eye, then both shot open when she saw the digital clock by her bedside. "Oh CRAP! I'm gonna be late!" She got up and raced to her closet, just as her mother opened the door.

"I'll pack you some breakfast for the ride.."

"No time, mom! Quick, where's my Mega Drive?!" Yukari shouted, throwing things out without a second thought.

"Your what, dear?"

"My gaming console from when I was a kid!"

Her mother looked confused. "Why, I think your father put that old thing in the atti-"

 **ZOOM** went the homeroom teacher's steps, towards said attic. If she was going to whip Chiyo into shape, she needed a proper video game!

* * *

"WHAT?! You played another game without me?!"

When it was time for class to start, Chiyo was happily telling her other friends about the fun game Sakaki had shown her, leaving out the part where Mayaa unplugged it.

"Tomo, it's not a big deal. Chiyo-chan had fun. Isn't this a group effort?" Yomi asked.

"But I had a whole list of what she was gonna plaaaay…." Tomo whined. "Well, I guess if Miss Sakaki showed you, then it's okay. I'll bet she got the game from her younger cousin or somethin'."

Chiyo winked at Sakaki. Soon Yukari raced into the room.

"Alright class, let's get started!" she set down a mysterious paper bag. "We're gonna pick up from where we left yesterday in chapter 5."

XXXXX

"Psst, Kagura. What do you reckon's in that bag?"

Kagura leaned in and squinted. "I dunno. Probably Miss Yukari's lunch."

"What? But it's kinda big. Maybe Miss Yukari's a big eater."

"Wouldn't surprise me!" Tomo added, eager to solve the bag mystery. Yukari decided to let the noisy chatter go and focus on the real issue.

"Chiyo! How about you complete this sentence on the board?"

"Of course, Miss Yukari!" she exclaimed, getting up. But as soon as she picked up the chalk, she was nudged by Yukari's elbow. "Huh?"

"Look in the bag," she whispered.

Chiyo did just that.

"Chiyo, quick! How many cases of ramen did she stuff in there?" Tomo called out.

"Shut up, Tomo!"

"What is this, Miss Yukari?"

"Hehehehe…..well, if you're eager to play some video games," she began, whispering in a sly voice, "then it's only fair I show you some _good_ ones!"

"But wouldn't this interfere with my studies?"

Yukari laughed. "You've got the highest grade in the class! It'd take like a thousand video games to lower that!"

"Million," Sakaki quietly corrected from her desk.

"So meet me in the gym at lunch time."

* * *

Of course, Nyamo was busy organizing some equipment when her ears caught the skidding sounds of a wheeled set being pushed. "What the…." she left the closet-

-only to see Yukari wheel in a TV set used for instructional videos. Chiyo was seated, alone, in the bleachers.

"Yukari! What IS this?!"

"Nyamo, we just need 20 minutes or so, okay?" she snapped, plugging in the Mega Drive. After fiddling around with the wires, she handed the controller to Chiyo.

"You can't just use the gym during downtime to play video games! I could get in a lot of trouble!"

"Ssssh! What's the principal gonna do, make you run laps? Ignore her, Chiyo, because it's time you get an introduction to gaming proper!"

Chiyo laughed nervously. "B-But I've played them before yesterday, Miss Yukari. Super Mario was my first game ever."

"Oh….Chiyo, Chiyo….I'm disappointed in you! You fell for the inferior graphics and small bit count. Everyone knows THIS guy was where it was at!"

The title screen featured an anthropomorphic hedgehog named Sonic wagging his finger at the player.

"Yukari! Turn this off!"

"20 minutes, Nyamo!" she turned to Chiyo. "Hurry, hurry! Press start so you can see his greatness."

At the command, Chiyo was then able to control Sonic in Green Hill Zone. He picked up speed quickly as she held right, and she was surprised when he could survive a hit.

"He's not like Mario at all!"

"'Course not! As long as you have rings, you're invincible!" Yukari watched as Chiyo picked up speed once more. "Good, good! Watch out for those bad guys! Jump on him to knock them out!"

"Oh for pete's sake!" Nyamo headed to the door, but when she opened it, Tomo ran past her, followed by Osaka, Yomi, Kagura, and Sakaki. "Huh?!"

"Yukari! You think you're so clever, hiding this from us?!" Tomo eyed the Mega Drive. "HEY! I was gonna show Chiyo-chan Sonic first!"

"That's that speedy guy, right Yomi?" Osaka asked. "He's gotta go fast…." she hummed the theme song she once heard.

"He's an animal, but yeah." Yomi had to take her glasses off. "These games always make me dizzy…"

"I call next!" Kagura shouted.

"No ME!" Tomo shouted.

Sakaki looked disappointed. This game was before the cute sidekick, Tails, was added.

"What is happening…." Nyamo muttered. She sighed and joined the others on the bleachers. As soon as Chiyo started the second act, she paused the game.

"Miss Nyamo, did you want to play?"

"….me?"

"Chiyo! Nyamo is the absolute WORST at Sonic! I've beaten this game 253 times, and she can't even get past the second level!"

"This isn't just for me," the genius said plainly. "Video games aren't fun if I'm the only one doing it. So Miss Nyamo should get a turn!"

"Then me, then Kagura, then Yukari," Tomo said. "Hurry! Lunch doesn't last forever!"

"Why am I last?! It's MY game!"

But Nyamo took the controller. "Aw hell, why not give it a shot?"

XXXXX

"Ah! Who puts these hazards here?"

Chiyo sighed, Marble Hill was proving to be too difficult for the gym teacher. "You're not supposed to keep mashing the jump button, Miss Nyamo."

"R-Right. I knew that!"

"No you didn't! Give Chiyo-chan the controller back!"

"It's fine, Miss Yukari. I understand how this game works! But it's just too fast for me…"

Yomi groaned and covered her mouth. "You're telling me…"

Ten minutes later, Nyamo had gotten to act 2, but she lost almost all of Sonic's lives.

"This is great! I've never gotten this far!"

Then she hit the lava.

**DA-DOOM**

"What?! Stupid gopher!"

Yukari smacked the controller from her hands. "It's a _hedgehog_ , Nyamo!" Then Tomo snatched it away. "HEY!"

"My turn, my turn!"

But Tomo's strategy was go as fast as she possibly can, zipping past all of the enemies and power-ups. She beat the first level of Green Hill surprisingly well, fast.

"Is it my turn?"

"Not until I die, Kagura! That's how it works!"

"Excuse me, you little brats, but my parents bought me this game when I was a kid! So I-" Yukari snatched the controller back. "-should get to play first!"

"Give me that back! I was almost to Eggman!"

The clash of competition eventually lead to Yukari, Tomo, and Kagura fighting over the controller, even off the bleachers….just as the principal was coming in with two parents.

"Our faculty is well-trained and professional…your child would be a perfect fit for-

Silence. Everyone looked ready to bolt, but luckily Osaka was there:

"You want to play next, Mr. Principal?"

* * *

"Welp, Yukari and Nyamo took the fall for that one."

Chiyo, Osaka, and Tomo were walking home later that day.

"M-Maybe this is getting out of control….we should have a rule, no video game stuff at school! Did you see how fast Miss Yukari tried to hide her system?"

"And how fast she was whining to the principal to give it back?" Tomo laughed. "Chiyo-chan, that's the thrill of video games. You block out what's around you to really enjoy the adventure!"

Speaking of such…

"Say, why he is called Eggman anyways?"

Tomo blinked. "Huh? Osaka, he's _shaped_ like an egg. They're weird in America, though, because they called him Robotnik!"

"Oh, that makes more sense. 'Cause of the robots." Osaka looked up. "Wait, what's this?"

"Glad you asked. This little shop, here? It's where I check out all the retro games! Yukari's old Mega Drive was only a piece of that. Chiyo-chan, your dinky Wii isn't even new either!"

"It's not dinky!" she countered.

But the three took the detour inside.

XXXXX

While Tomo was chatting up the owner, Osaka was checking an old cabinet. Her eyes lit up when she saw a cartridge for Sonic the Hedgehog.

"Wow, they got 'em on that little thing?"

"What system is that for?" Chiyo asked. Osaka found an old game boy advance next to it, and she put it in and turned it on. "Ohhh…."

However, this version was…..interesting.

"I-Isn't Sonic supposed to…..go fast?"

"He sure is!" Tomo said, walking over. "Wha…?! Oh no!"

The version Osaka was playing was the heavily bugged, slowed, anniversary version. Not only was Sonic "slower", the screen was zoomed in, and the music was in bad condition, GBA soundchip notwithstanding.

"Ugh! How can you play this one, Osaka? It's infamous!"

But the Osakan's face was a perpetual open-mouthed smile. "It's my kind of speed…dontcha agree, Chiyo-chan?"

"I guess so…?"

"Say! Do you think Yomi can play this without gettin' sick?"

"I'm sick just _looking_ at it, Osaka," said Tomo. "What does that tell you?"

Beat.

"How much, mister?" she asked the owner.

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next game - Wii Sports
> 
> This is "intended" to take place in current times, even if the manga was early 2000s. Just so I could use more games. Also I'm gonna bring Kaorin in the mix too.


	7. Wii Sports

"All right Mr. Tadakichi, I think my plan is going to work!"

Another school day had come passed, but Chiyo made sure to refuse or downplay any video games Tomo or Kagura kept telling her about. Enough was enough. It was high time she made a stand!

"Everyone should have fun, right?" The bell rang. "Oh, they're here!"

XXXXX

To no surprise, Tomo was the first one inside. "Hey, Chiyo-chan! I was thinking today we could play-"

"Girls. I have to make an announcement." Chiyo took a deep breath. "This has gotten out of control! I don't want to play video games if it just gets us in trouble at school!"

"But that's just school!" Kagura replied. "Can't we play after?"

"Exactly! But I've come up with a way that you all get to show a game."

The five other girls stared blankly when Chiyo rolled in a chalkboard. With a pointer, she outlined each line.

"Tomo showed me a game, then Miss Sakaki. But then, Miss Yukari showed me a game, but Tomo cut in right after? Starting now, we should make a rotating order of who does what! That way, no one will feel left out!"

"That sounds fair," Sakaki said. "We all like different genres, and we all play at different rates."

"Yeah, I'm definitely the most hardcore here," Tomo automatically said. "then Kagura, Miss Sakaki….then Osaka and Yomi are tied for last."

"What? Just because I didn't glue my face to a Gameboy when we were in middle school doesn't I mean I don't play at all."

Chiyo smiled. "Glad you're all aboard, then. We'll play for two hours, and at the end of the session, we can count up the points for each game won!" she erased the board and wrote everyone (but her)'s name.

"Nice! I'll smoke you all!" Tomo grinned. "What game are we playing?"

She was handed a Wiimote.

* * *

Turns out Chiyo only owned two Wiimotes, which meant Tomo, Sakaki, Osaka, Yomi, and Kagura all had to take turns. Although, starting was becoming a problem….

"Osaka c'mon! Just save the Mii already!"

"Nah, it ain't quite right yet." she adjusted the height by a tiny fraction of the bar, then spent a few seconds switching the eyebrows around.

"Chiyo-chan, does this count for the two hour span?" Sakaki asked, solving some math problems with Kagura. Three girls not playing meant they could work on homework in between rounds.

"Well….I guess we can go over…."

"ARGH!" Tomo was getting impatient. "Osaka, I don't want to spend two hours just doing homework! Hurry up so we can play!"

"Wait, wait….ah almost got it…."

She switched the eyes one more time, and waited approximately 124.3 seconds before-

"Ah! The third one was better, I think."

Tomo banged her head on the wall.

* * *

**Game 1 – Yomi vs. Kagura (Bowling)**

"Best of luck!" Chiyo started the timer and stood by the board. She watched as Yomi made the first move, rolling her arm to make her Mii do the same. 6 pins fell, and she whiffed the second roll.

"My turn, huh?" Kagura stretched, and rolled her arm with a greater intensity. She got a strike.

"Nicely done!"

"Psst, Chiyo-chan, am I next?"

"Tomo. Do Miss Yukari's exercises in your workbook, please. We can have fun AND do our schoolwork."

"Aww man…."

The next frame, Yomi mentioned to get a strike, and Kagura only got 8. The two went back and forth, but the latter was taking the lead by the ninth.

"Play this game a lot, Kagura?"

"Nah. But it _is_ a sport, and I'm the best at those!" she gave a cocky smile to Sakaki, who just blinked, as if to say "yes, you are".

**Winner: Kagura**

XXXXX

**Game 2 – Sakaki vs. Tomo (Tennis)**

"HYAH! HYAH! YAH!"

The wildcat darted back and forth across room, her Mii smacking the ball as hard as she could with each serve. Sakaki seemed to be keeping up, but she was also trying not to get hit. "Uh, Tomo…"

"45-30! This one's mine!" Tomo reared back, but since she forgot to put on the strap-

"GUAH?!"

-the wiimote shot out of her hand and smacked into the wall, making Chiyo's dog yelp and run out of the room.

"…."

"…"

"d-do….do we redo that?"

**Winner: Sakaki**

XXXXX

**Game 4 – Osaka vs. Yomi (Golf)**

"Alright, Osaka, your turn."

 _Ah right. Golf, just like my grandpa used to show me._ She stepped in front of the tv. _I'll use his special shot to get a hole-in-one!_

_ Ayumu, wait! I have a confession to make… _

_Huh? Who's that?_

_ Y-Your grandpa? _

_Whooooa, I can talk to the dead?_

_ No, Ayumu, I'm still alive remember?  _

_How's grandma, then?_

_L-Listen to your grandpa's imaginary voice, child! I've never gotten a hole in one. That footage I showed you….was just from a movie._

To the other girls, Osaka was just caught up in her thoughts as normal….or as normal as she could be.

_Ohhh…..so that means…._

_ Yes! Can you forgive an old fool like me? _

Her response was a careful swing that soared the ball into the air, and when it landed, it bounced and bounced….and fell into the cup.

"WHAT?!" Tomo and the others were speechless.

"I did it, grandpa! Hehehe…"

**Winner: Osaka**

XXXX

**Game 7 – Sakaki vs. Kagura (Boxing)**

As the two duked it out with their avatars, Chiyo came back into the room with drinks and snacks for everyone.

"Mr. Tadakichi's all calmed down now! I gave him some food."

"Y'know, Chiyo-chan, this was a brilliant idea." Yomi took a rice cracker. "And for once, I have a fighting chance."

"Oh..Yomi, I've only seen you play that Mario Party game. What do you like?"

"Eh, a bit of everything. I'm not really picky. Mostly I just played what Tomo put in front of me. I guess if I had to choose, I prefer adventure games. Something quiet and ambient."

"Like that Link game?" Osaka asked. Tomo was too busy cheering both girls on in their match: unsurprisingly, they were deadlocked.

"Uh…..yeah."

"The Legend of Zelda?" Chiyo looked eager. "That's another series by Nintendo, right? I've heard so many good things about it…"

"Yeah, sounds about right. It's more talked about in the West, if you check the online forums."

"Guys look, LOOK!" Tomo pointed to the screen. "Sakaki knocked her block off!"

**Winner: Sakaki**

XXXXX

**Game 19: Tomo vs. Yomi (Baseball)**

"Geez, it's getting kinda late. Mom's gonna be calling me soon…." the girls had actually went an hour over time.

"We can stop the game after this, Miss Kagura." Chiyo had finished the last of her English homework and now she was checking Osaka's. "The scores are pretty much tallied."

Osaka had the lowest amount of wins (1), while Kagura had the most (6). Sakaki was in second place with 5 games won, but Tomo and Yomi had tied for third place – 3 wins a piece. This would be the tiebreaker.

"Chiyo? You have company over?"

"O-Oh!" She ran into the kitchen, where her parents with both sitting with some tea. "Yes, I hope that's okay. We've been doing our homework and um….."

"Playing video games?" teased her father.

"Yes sir…"

"Now Chiyo, your friends seem to be having a lot of fun. As long as you're happy and can get your work done too, there's no harm," replied her mother. In fact, the Mihamas looked proud of their daughter.

"Everyone wants to show me so many things, it's….it's so exciting. But I promise, I'll always make sure we get our schoolwork done!"

"YESSSS!" came Tomo's voice from the other room. "I AM THE CHAMP! SUCK ON THAT, YOMI!"

Chiyo's face turned the same color as her hair. "Um….Tomo gets a little h-heated…also I'll be sure to pay to fix our wall."

"W-Wall?" both of her parents sweatdropped.

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next game: Dance Dance Revolution


	8. Dance Dance Revolution

"Night y'all!"

Osaka headed up the stairs and stepped into her room, where she happily crawled into her bed. She (actually) managed to get some homework done, she played with Chiyo-chan, and a call to her grandpa proved that he was still alive! [although he was confused when she bragged about her shot]

"Ah….time for a good sleep…." she closed her eyes…..

* * *

And soon she found herself alone, in an eerily quiet arcade. No one else seemed to be around, so she walked and walked.

"Hello. You're that weird friend of Chiyo's, right?"

"GUH?!"

It was the mysterious floating cat-like figure that first appeared in her New Year's dream, Chiyo's ""father""". His face was locked in its usual amused smile.

"Woooow…hey mister, I was at your house earlier. But you weren't a cat!"

"Hmmmmm?" his skin turned blue then green. "Are you suggesting that I am a cat? Are you _not_ suggesting that I can, in fact, change form at will?"

"Oh….so what is this place?"

"I heard my daughter is playing video games with you now," he explained, floating over. "So I want to make sure she plays nothing but wholesome, fun games."

"Oh sure thing, mister!"

Chiyo's father (let's just call him Chichi for short) was used to the girl's naivete, so he filled in her in. "As in, games where the developers clearly love their work. No cheap games. What was the first game you were going to show her?"

"Uhhh….Pong, I guess."

"Goodness, that game is twice as old as my daughter. That might bore her. Let's play a game to think it over, okay?"

Osaka nodded. "Are we gonna play one of these cabinets? I love me some Donkey Kong!"

"Not quite."

XXXX

The machine he showed her was the only working one in the arcade. It was flashy, had two matching directional pads, and was titled:

**Dance Dance Revolution**

"Whooooa…."

"Music is one of life's simple pleasures. And you move around a lot, so it also encourages activity. Please consider something like this for Chiyo."

"But Mr-"

"Just call me Chichi for simplicity. Anyways, would you like to play?"

"I ain't coordinated enough for this, Chichi."

The ""cat"" just floated around the girl, expression ever unchanging. "I see. So you would reject my daughter if she herself wanted to play with you? How disappointing."

"W-Wait! I guess ah can give it a try….."

"Fantastic! That'll be 500 yen." he pointed to the coin slot.

"Wait a minute, ain't this a dream?"

XXXXXXX

But Chichi said she was good for it, whatever that it meant. He scrolled through the song listing, and Osaka was still trying to figure out he would dance, being….well, floating.

"Ah! This looks like a good one! Are you ready?"

"Sure thing!"

"Let's play on the max difficulty setting," Chichi said, his cheery tone suggesting there would be no argument. Osaka gaped.

When the song started, arrows corresponding the pads flashed onto the screen, passing through their outlines.

 _Chiyo-chan, does your dad have feet?!_ Osaka looked down, but an orange paw pulled her up.

"Excuse me, Osaka, but I won't approve of a friend that purposefully loses just to make my little girl feel better. That's just patronizing. You should focus on the screen."

"Ah…..s-sorry."

Unfortunately, her focus was filled by trying to move her feet to the right pad.

"Up….no, down! Left, left…right, right-"

"There you go!"

Much to her shock, Chichi was nailing every beat with PERFECT timing. The highest Osaka got was OK, with over half of them being misses.

"N-No fair, I don't even know this song, mister!"

"Oh? Are you implying you would do a better job if you knew?"

The tone made her a little nervous. "Y-Yeah…."

"OK then." Chichi paused the game and headed back to the menu. "Please, select a track you're more familiar with."

"Let's see…..wait a minute…they're all the same!"

All being the Nyan Cat song, of course.

"We need some human music, mister."

This turned out to be the wrong choice of the words, as Chichi began to fluctuate in color and rumble violently. " _Are you implying that I,_ _ **am not a human?!"**_

"AAH!"

XXXXX

The "punishment" was simple. Osaka was to play the game on max difficulty, until she mastered the song with every step being a PERFECT.

"Ah….mister…." now on the 75th run, she was exhausted. "I have school tomorrow…."

"Are you saying you want to be a…..quitter?" Chichi tsked. "That's a poor habit to encourage to my daughter, you know."

"Waah! Can you tell me one thing, at least? I've been dyin' to know…"

"Yes….?" At least she had gotten skilled enough to ask questions while focusing on the screen.

"Can Chiyo-chan turn into a cat?"

"Oh, excellent question! You see-"

XXXXXX

**RING RING**

"Ayumu, get up! You're going to be late!"

Osaka's eyes peeled open. Not only was the song stuck in her head, but now she had no answer to her question. "Awww….."

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next Game - Super Smash Bros. Melee


	9. Super Smash Bros. Melee

It was the weekend, which meant time for prospective vidya. Chiyo and the others had made their way to Kagura's house.

"Remember how it works, everyone. We study and play."

"You got that, Tomo?"

"Why tell ME, Yomi?! Osaka slacks off too!"

Said girl was staring at Chiyo, her mind still slightly traumatized by the dance torture her ""father""" gave her. But all that was shrug aside when she rang the doorbell.

XXXX

"C'mon in!" Kagura greeted. "We just have to be a little quiet, since my dad's working on some stuff in his office. But he said it was cool to have friends over. ….uh, where's Sakaki?"

"She had to take Mayaa to the vet," Tomo said. "Now come on! Time's wasting!"

"Fine, fine, this way…."

The athlete lead the girls down the hall, leaving them to look at the pictures on the walls. The odd thing was, this was the first time any of them had been to Kagura's house. So little so that Osaka wondered something.

"Hey, so uh….what's Kagura's given name?"

"That's easy! It's….Y-Yomi, tell her."

Yomi blinked. "I guess she never brought it up. Come to think about it, what's Sakaki's given name?"

"Wouldn't it be swell if it was Ayumu, like me?"

"Who the heck is Ayumu?" Tomo chimed in. "And Sakaki probably has a cool name like Ryu, or….Ken! Or maybe Cloud."

"Are you seriously listing off video game character names?"

"HEY!" Kaguya tapped her door. "Can you guys stop arguing about whatever and come inside already?"

"…"

"…"

"W-We can check the class roster," Chiyo whispered.

Once the console was set up, Kagura handed a controller over to Chiyo. She looked it over: it was a little more blocky than her wiimote but more natural feeling than the N64.

"Game…cube?"

"Yeah huh. And the game we're playing is AWESOME! So I want you in the first round." she passed the others to Yomi and Osaka.

"Uhhh….what about me?"

"Tomo, you failed Miss Yukari's last quiz. Maybe you should do your homework first," Chiyo said sagely. "Good luck!"

"Awwww…."

Kagura turned the Gamecube on, playing the cinematic intro: a hand grabbed a trophy of Mario and it came to live, then attacked Link, Pikachu, and Kirby.

"Whoooooa….."

"Hahahaha! That's that Metroid character," Osaka giggled.

"That's Samus, Osaka! AUGH let me play, let me play!"

"You heard Chiyo-chan." Once past the title screen, Kagura headed through to the character selection screen. She picked Fox quickly.

"Um….how do we play this?"

"It's a fighting game, Chiyo. You just have to knock your opponents off the stage. That button is the regular moves, and those are the special moves."

"Ohhh…..okay…." she picked Peach, given her history. Yomi and Osaka both picked random.

"What?! What gives, Yomi?"

"Tomo, pay attention to your work."

**Ready?….GO!**

"Whaaa!" Chiyo flailed with the controller. "T-This game feels so fast!" Peach wobbled around while Fox was already jumping around, grabbing arms. (Yomi had Pikachu and Osaka had Mario). She fell off the ledge. "Oh no!"

"Up b, Chiyo, up b!" Tomo shouted.

"I….died? Wait, I came back!"

"We're playing timed, Chiyo," Kagura grunted. She was already comboing the hapless Mario, and poor Osaka was only 5% better than Chiyo. The match continued, and Fox was smashing everyone left and right, although Yomi was getting a fair amount of good hits.

Osaka had SD'd five times now.

Then the match ended.

**This game's winner is….FOX!**

"Whoo-hoo! That was great! Up for another round?"

"Umm, Miss Kagura?" Chiyo set the controller down. "Is there anyway to go…s-slower?"

"Maaaaybe a four man melee was a little too advanced for you, Chiyo. How about a smoother round, with only three people?"

"Me me me me!" Tomo begged.

"I should start some of my own homework. You play with them Osaka," said Yomi, who got up to head to her schoolbag.

"Me? Well alright."

"NO!"

Kaguya started up another round (Chiyo switched to Pichu while Osaka tried out Yoshi), and this time, picked a flatter stage – Final Destination.

**Ready?...GO!**

This time Chiyo understood more of the game's commands, and was able to recover more reliably. Unforunately, not only was Pichu the lightest character in the game, Kagura was rather brutal in her ledge guarding.

"Kyah!"

"Don't worry Chiyo-chan, I got ya!" Osaka picked up a bob-omb and threw it, only to have Fox's Shine attack deflect the shot. Then poor Yoshi was smashed into the SD range.

"Let me plaaaaaaaaaaay," Tomo whined.

Kagura won again.

"Gee….this game sure is dangerous." Chiyo sighed. "I hope that little Pokemon wasn't smashed too bad…."

"Hey, Kagura….why don't you try Chiyo against Osaka?"

"Huh? Would that work?"

For this third match, Chiyo decided on someone strong ("Luigi!") while Osaka picked Jigglypuff. The tierist in Kagura was a little skeptical, but when the match started…

**Ready?...GO!**

"Ah ha, now I got you!"

"You ain't gonna win!"

….Chiyo and Osaka were equally matched – they both kept whiffing most of their attacks, but they were laughing as they ran for the different items.

_Wow…._

"OOH a Pokeball!" Jigglypuff released a Mew, stunning the whole room. It was in a bubble and floated up to the screen.

"Amazing!" Chiyo giggled. "I wonder what else we'll find!"

Kagura fell to her knees. "I…never released a Mew before…" she smirked. "You guys play some more matches and get good, okay? I want a rematch!"

"Okay!"

"Thanks, Miss Kagura!"

"Wait!" Tomo reached for the controller. "Lemme play already!"

"Nah." the third and fourth controllers were unplugged while the two girls continued their wild item match. "Sometimes, in Smash, it's more fun to watch."

Then Luigi released a Celebi.

"WHAT?!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next Game - Majora's Mask [with Nyamo and Yukari]


	10. The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask

That same evening, Nyamo had paid a visit to Yukari's house, hoping the two could go out for a casual drink. But when she entered her room-

"Hahahaha! That's another minigame down pat!"

Yukari was playing a Zelda game on her old N64, clad only in her sleeping clothes.

"Yukari….? I thought we had plans?"

"Nyamo, you're not gonna meet any guys saying things like that. I'm a little busy," the English teacher grumbled.

"Busy?! Didn't you beat this game already?"

"No duh, but I'm trying to enter the speedrunning circuit! Saw a bunch of videos before work today. Some of these Americans are pretty nuts!"

Nyamo took a glance at the TV: it looked to be a game where Link was running about with a clock at the bottom of the screen. Currently Yukari was on **2** **nd** **Day.**

"Oh no...not THIS game…."

"Hahahahah! I forgot. When you played at it my house years ago, you kept getting lost and confused! Typical gym teacher strats."

A growl was thrown her way, but Yukari laughed it off. So she marched over and turned off the console instead.

"HEY! I was making good time!"

"Stop saying I'm an idiot just because I teach gym! You think I can't beat this game, now? We're in our late 20s, Yukari."

"Age has nothing to do with it," came the reply. "Dad still can't beat the original Super Mario Bros. And I don't want to frustrate you _, Miss Kurosawa,_ so let's just go out instead."

But Nyamo snatched the controller from her hand and gestured for her to put the N64 back on.

"…damn it."

* * *

Starting a new file, Nyamo seemed to get past the beginning stretch just fine – Link got his horse stolen by the Skull Kid, she went through the forest, he got turned into a Deku Scrub…then, she was in Clock Town, the "hub".

"Clock's ticking, Nyamo. Better figure out how to change back~!"

_She's so annoying….I need to pop this bubble, then play hide n seek with the Bombers, right? Piece of cake!_

Deku Link moved across the four directions of town to search for a gang of trouble-making kids. Then the leader, Jim, gave her the password to get in the hideout.

**35421**

"AH! Quick Yukari, give me a pen!"

Unamused, Yukari just pressed A for her. "You can check it in the notebook, Nyamo."

Link moved onward to the Astral Observatory, where a quick look to the demonic looking moon (something that always frightened her), a rock fell from its sky.

"So then I take this to the Deku merchant, right?"

"Welll well! Has someone been practicing?"

The Deku Scrub took the Moon's Tear and flew away, allowing Nyamo to use the flower to boost into the sky for a limited time.

"…uhh…geez, it's only the 1st Day. What now? The festival begins on the final day….."

Yukari shrugged. "Gotta wait it out."

"Seriously? Can't I speed up time?"

"Not yet, Nyamo! We're still on the tutorial part of the game."

* * *

Finally, Link shot down Skull Kid when the clock was approaching midnight of the final day, reliquenishing the Ocarina. Once Nyamo played the Song of Time-

"It worked! I'm back to normal! HA!"

"Greattttt…" Yukari could play the first 30 minutes of the game in her sleep. "Well, what sidequest are you gonna start first?"

"S-Sidequest?"

Nervously, Nyamo opened her status screen, only to see a whopping **52** heart pieces missing. And a screen dedicated to _just the masks of the game._

She only had ONE – the Deku mask.

"And that's a required one! If you want to 100% this Nyamo, be prepared to go back in time a lot. And you can only save when doing this. Lucky Americans got save statues."

"….."

"What's wrong?"

Nyamo steeled her nerves to say: "I'm not gonna waste my time trying to 100% this game, Yukari. I have a life! But I WILL beat the bosses."

"That's not fun, but whatever!" Yukari took a sip from her soda. "When you rage quit, don't break my TV."

_"Yukari!"_

* * *

The first temple wasn't too bad at all, but that was to be expected – Windfall didn't throw anything _too_ crazy at the player. Nyamo managed to cut down the boss, Odolwa, in the middle of the third day.

"Just three more left…."

"Hahaha, I hate to break it to you, but there's no way you're gonna beat the other three temples in one cycle each."

"Still doubting me?" Nyamo warped back to Clock Town and headed north, to Snowhead. After some exploring around, she got the Lens of Truth, and even managed to find the Goron grave for the appropriate mask.

"The Goron….? I never got this far, Yukari. Is it better than the Deku?"

"Hell yeah! You can roll SUPER fast, like Sonic the Hedgehog! ….speaking of, I'm so glad my Mega Drive wasn't taken…"

Indeed, Goron Link moved incredibly fast through the snow, but at a cost – it consumed magic and was a little hard to control.

"W-Wait! Link!"

He fell into the chasm.

XXXXX

Yukari smirked. "Snowhead Temple. It's not gonna get easier from here on out, Nyamo."

"I'm in the middle of Day 2 AND I played the song to slow things down! It can't be that hard."

The temple's main gimmick was a massive pillar in the center; punching it as Goron Link would make rise or fall to access different floors. Nyamo moved onward carefully….until she fell down and faced lava damage.

"Ugh, I never understand why video games do this. It's a snow level! Why put in lava?"

"I'm glad you have time to nitpick Aonuma-sensei's brilliant game."

"…..huh?" Nyamo turned away. "Who's Aonuma?"

"What kind of Zelda fan are you?! Aonuma is THE Zelda developer. Btw, you didn't move Link out of the lava."

"?!"

**GAME OVER**

XXXXXX

Onward Nyamo moved, and while she was making some progress, she found herself going up and down a little too often, thanks to falling. Constantly having to shoot a fire arrow at the same switch was also getting annoying.

"It's almost Day 3 btw."

"I know that! I have plenty of time!"

Unfortunately, day 3 was crossed into after Nyamo messed up the pillar punching yet again. This made her go around to reset it to try once more. But once she FINALLY made it to the boss…

"Woof, only 6 ingame hours left." Yukari watched as Goht was freed, a goat-esque monster that charged around a circular track. "Even you can't screw this battle up."

"It's easy!"

Link shot an ineffective arrow at the monster, then was barreled through.

"HAHAHAHA! Nyamo, do you not pay attention to patterns?! Use the Goron mask!"

"O-Oh!"

* * *

Nyamo stretched. "Two bosses left…..and I only had to reset time three times!"

"Yeah yeah, you THINK it's so easy, but I saw you sweating during the boss fight. Hope you're ready for Great Bay!"

The south took Link to the beach, where a dying Zora relinquished his soul into a mask. It gave him faster speed swimming but like the Deku, fire was its weakness.

"So….I guess I need to find the Zora eggs….at the Pirate Fortress…."

Yukari grinned like a madman. _Here it comes…._

XXXXX

"OH COME ON!" shouted Nyamo. "How am I supposed to get all of them if these stupid pirates keep throwing me out?! I can't beat the temple like this!"

"You need seven eggs, Nyamo, and you only have ONE bottle. You definitely have to reset time."

"B-But that means I have to get all of the eggs again!"

"Bingo!"

XXXXX

Three time cycles later, a cross Nyamo was staring at the entrance to the Great Bay Temple. "I'm fresh and ready to go…..it's morning of Day 1…."

Yukari glanced at her clock; it was actually 10:30 pm.

"Huh. Hey, Nyamo, wanna crash here tonight? Like our high school days!"

"Yukari, be quiet. I need to focus."

Yukari's voice dripped with sarcasm: "uh huh. It's all you."

* * *

Great Bay was a very, very confusing can of worms for Nyamo. Zora Link had to maneuver through narrow water passages, but the flow of the water had to be changed on and off; she found herself trapped in circles due to fast currents.

"Damn it! Am I going the wrong way?"

"Hate to bother you," Yukari said cheerfully, "but you totally forgot to play the Song of Inverted Time."

Nyamo's eyes went wide as dinner plates. She was stuck in the middle of the 2nd day, so she quickly played the song….only to put the flow of time back to normal, because she had already used it and her friend was just messing with her.

**_"Yukari!"_ **

XXXXXXX

"NO!" Nyamo almost pulled out her controller. "I only have two ingame hours left! I didn't even find the boss key!"

She soon wiped out.

When she saw that she had to redo the whole dungeon at the new cycle, she whimpered and dropped the controller.

"Not so tough now, huh Nyamo?"

"…you're right. I can't do this. I suck at these adventure games," she replied, head hanging low. "What was I thinking?!"

"…..hey. You got up to Great Bay and even found some heart pieces by total accident! Give yourself more credit!"

"But….it's too hard…."

"Hard?! You didn't say that when I helped you with Ocarina of Time! I remember your happy face when you stabbed Ganon at the end of the game…..don't you want that same feeling? You're so close."

Determined, Nyamo hurried through the dungeon again, managing to reach Gyorg in the apex of the third day. One difficult battle later….she cheered.

"I DID IT! Thanks, Yukari!"

Tired (the time was almost midnight), Yukari patted her back and crawled into her bed. "Nighty night then."

"Yeah….I'm beat…."

"Oh. Forgot one little thing."

"Hm?"

"You still have one more dungeon, Nyamo. Stone Tower? Hope you like constantly going upside down and switching masks."

Minamo Kurosawa's shriek of agony echoed across the neighborhood.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> From here on out, each chapter will end with a list of characters for the next game.
> 
> Next Game: Animal Crossing (GC) [with Chiyo, Sakaki, Osaka, and Kaorin]


	11. Animal Crossing

_"Sigh_ …..another day all alone…."

Unlike Chiyo and the others, Kaorin was not fortunate enough to wind up in Yukari's class for a third time, instead getting Kimura-sensei as a homeroom teacher. She hated it.

"Good morning Kaorin!"

"Oh….hey, Chiyo-chan…."

The genius shared her frown. "You're still upset over your class, aren't you? I'm terribly sorry."

"It's not your fault. At least I can see you all around the school, right? Ah ha…." Her mind flocked to the _super-cool_ Miss Sakaki she couldn't see, which only made it worse.

"Hmmm…maybe you can tag along….?"

"What? What do you mean?"

Once Chiyo explained her after school plans to study with Sakaki, Kaorin nearly fainted.

* * *

"This is a dream come true! Me, i-in Miss Sakaki's house?!"

She had thought it about the whole day, making Kimura's creepy and jittery movements a lot more bearable. She was in cloud nine with the possibilities, but that didn't last long.

"Howdy Kaorin."

"Huh…Osaka? You got invited too?"

"Whaddaya mean? I'm always up for some video games. I ain't the best, but one day I'll be as good as Tomo or Kagura!"

" _Video games?"_

XXXXXX

Sakaki's house was as amazing as Kaorin had expected, but she always did have an imagination when it came to the taller girl. The four were in her room. Thanks to Chiyo's encouragement, she didn't hide the stuffed animals. Not that it mattered, Kaorin thought they were adorable.

"So Kaorin, the girls wanted to show me some video games, but we worked out a system that lets us study AND have fun with them. That's alright, right?"

 _The girls….!_ "Huh? Oh. Dad doesn't like them in the house. I've only really played some arcade cabinets." Kaorin looked at Sakaki's notes and wished hers were that neat.

Osaka's eyes shined. "Saaaay, how about we battle with that Smash Brothers, then?"

"I don't have that game, Osaka."

"Huh?!"

Sakaki shook her head. "I'm not a fan of fighting games. The game I have in mind today is something relaxing and easy on the eyes."

_Relaxing and easy on the…..ohhhh, Miss Sakaki, that's what you are!_

"Kaorin? Are you alright?"

"Guh?!" she scrambled through her notebook, trying to avoid Sakaki's gaze. "F-Fine! So h-how does this little system even work?"

"Tell her, Chiyo-chan," Osaka said.

"It's very simple. We alternate turns with controllers and study on the off rotation. We established an order to see who suggests what game, and today is Miss Sakaki's turn!"

The tall girl held up a journal. "Tomo wants every game to go in this. She has the flu, Yomi is visiting a relative, and Kagura has swim practice." _Not that they'd like the game anyway_ , she added in her head. _At least, I don't think so…_

* * *

Osaka and Kaorin were going over math problems. "Psst, Kaorin, what's the answer to this one?"

"Oh…X is 34."

"Thanks. ….this one?"

"Uhhhh…6.57."

Osaka smiled, but then: "and th-"

"I'm not gonna solve every problem for you, Osaka!" she huffed. "Wait, what's that? What Miss Sakaki is setting up?"

Her Gamecube, of course. Once the game came on, the title of it was accompanied by a young villager getting off a train into a town filled with animal characters.

"Wow! What kind of game is _this_?" Chiyo asked, excited. She picked up the controller; the menu inside was one of the villagers standing in a lone spotlight.

**"So, uh…what do you want to do?"**

"Uhhh…? Am I choosing a new game, Miss Sakaki?"

"Mm-hmm. Don't worry, Chiyo, there's four save files."

Once that was settled, Chiyo's "character" was on a train with the amicable Rover, a blue cat that had all kinds of questions (name, origins, etc.). But she herself had no appearance yet; the camera was only facing Rover. But then the train stopped-

"Wow!"

Chiyo's villager got off the train, just like in the opening. She had pink hair and black eyes. The station monkey, Porter, bared her farewell, in the town of-

"Nekoville? But she ain't a cat."

Sakaki blushed. "You're the only character that isn't an animal. You got lucky, Chiyo-chan, the appearance is randomized."

"Wow! So I'm making a new start in a brand new town…."

"Mm-hmm. Go south to the four houses and pick one….Kaorin, do you want to study with me in the meantime?"

 _S-S-Study with…_ Kaorin's heart was pounding through her chest. Although, a part of her wanted to keep watching the game.

* * *

**"Oh ho! You want that house, yes? A fine choice!"**

The shopkeeper of the town, a tanuki named Tom Nook, was the resident that sold Chiyo's house to her, but with a horrible catch – she was hundreds of thousands of bells (the game currency) in debt.

"But I don't have any money, Mr. Nook…."

A glint appeared in Tom's eyes. If she had no money, she could work it off at his shop!

"This game is too real!" Osaka gasped. "Chiyo-chan, can we play the stock market?"

"Uhhh…I don't think we can…."

Chiyo headed over to Tom's shop – the first thing he asked was to plant some flowers around the shop, to liven up the place. It was a simple task. The second thing was-

**"Why don't you go around town and introduce yourself, hmmm?"**

"Oh! How big is the village, though…?"

Sakaki wanted to chime in, but she decided otherwise. Backseatting for Chiyo wouldn't very fun for either of them, so she looked back to their notes. Kaorin, on the other hand, needed something to distract her from her proximity to Sakaki.

"Wait Chiyo-chan! L-Let me play!" she blurted out.

"That's only fair. I should get some homework done."

Once the controller was passed over, Kaorin was in charge of Chiyo's villager. The town was divided into a A-H, 1-8 grid, and it included the landmarks, like the post office and police station.

"Wow….this controller…feels great!"

"Kaorin, look, look! There's a villager! And she ain't a cat! Whoa!"

Osaka was pointing at a green squirrel named Mint, walking around an orange tree.

"Talk to her! Maybe she can explain where the missin' cats are."

 _Um, Osaka…._ Sakaki sweatdropped. _You pick the name of the village before you meet people…_

**"ahhhhh? Oh hello! New to Nekoville? Walking around with** **_that_ ** **outfit? Well, if you need something from your closet…"**

"Hey!" Kaorin pouted. "What's wrong with Chiyo's clothes?"

"Mint's a little stuck up," explained Sakaki. "But she can be nice."

**"At least you dress better than that silly T-Bone, right? Nice to meet you, Chiyo!"**

Mint was also a "gossip" villager.

"Well! T-Bone's gonna hear about this, missy!" Kaorin moved past the squirrel, reaching the next house – a grumpy eagle named Apollo. There were *sets* of villagers with a similar personality type, but the game itself had well over 200 possible choices.

Chiyo's villager reached a golden statue of another human one.

"What….? What's this?"

The description praised Sakaki's villager for paying off their house's mortgage. Osaka was so amazed, she turned her head slowly to look at the neko lover.

"Um…."

"I gotta bring you to my parents, Miss Sakaki. Dad'd be stocked if he could pay off _his_ mortgage."

"…"

Kaorin was also amazed, but not just because it was Sakaki. The golden ting of the statue, what it represented? It was something to work for! And something that made the player's character stand out, which she _desperately, desperately_ wanted amongst her peers.

"M-Miss Sakaki! How long does it take for that?"

"Hmm? Quite a few hours, Kaorin."

"Does Mr. Hook pay minimum wage? Or tips?" asked Chiyo.

The innocence in the question made Sakaki smile. "He pays you bells, but most of the money you make comes from finding and selling items. You start off with a one room house. You want to expand it."

"DONE! I'll go as fast as I could!" a giddy Kaorin proclaimed, hitting the reset button. Then, the room fell silent when the girls realized Chiyo hadn't saved yet.

* * *

"Waaaah….I'm sorry…..!"

Kaorin had curled up into the corner in shame, although Chiyo and Sakaki insisted she hadn't done anything wrong. But to keep things fair, Osaka was given her chance to make her own villager.

"Thanks!"

Although out of class habit, she ended up naming herself "Osaka". Rover was on the train, asking the same questions.

"Huh? You met Chiyo 20 minutes ago, mister."

"It's the same for all players, Osaka."

"Ohhh."

Osaka moved through town in her quest to meet every villager, and to the surprise of her friends, she was writing down their information in her notebook.

"Uhhh…Osaka?"

"I'll be the most popular villager in town yet, Chiyo-chan, just you wait! That Tortimer guy will have to make ME the mayor! And my first policy? Paid off mortgages for everyone!"

Sakaki sweatdropped again. She looked to her New Leaf game case, an Animal Crossing game where you actually _were_ the mayor.

"Oh, wait. Kaorin, do you want to play again? You've been so sad in that corner…"

"No!" Kaorin turned around. "Don't pity me, Chiyo-chan! When you play again, you have to do that stuff over!"

"So? This game is so charming!"

Osaka, meanwhile, was struggling to not mix up Sabel and Mabel, the sister hedgehogs that ran the clothing shop.

"If you do play again…..Kaorin…" Sakaki's gaze was intense. "It is imperative you _never_ press the reset button on the same character."

_Guuuh?! I've done it now! I made Miss Sakaki angry!_

"Why?" Chiyo asked.

Sakaki sighed. "Osaka, do you mind doing this stuff over? It's important that you all see the dangers of resetting."

"Oh….sure….? I forgot where T-Bone lives anyways."

**CLICK**

"Now….load your file again, Osaka."

"Y-Yes ma'am," she replied, getting scared. When she came out of the house to restart the day, there was an angry looking mole with a miner's hat, holding a pickaxe.

**"HEY! So you're the kid that reset the game, huh?! That's just sick!"**

"EEEEEEEEEHHHHHHH?!"

Chiyo and Kaorin both gulped.

**"Me? Who am I? Name's Resetti, you punk! Haven't you heard of SAVING the game?! Of course you don't, the kids these days…always on the move, doing whatever!"**

"I'm sorry!"

Sakaki pitied Osaka. But Resetti had to be _seen._

**"What? You're SORRY? Welll…ok, don't start crying, okay? Just don't do it again! And we won't have any problems!"**

The mole dug back into his hole, leaving Osaka alone. She, however, was in too much shock to keep playing.

"Osaka….I'm sorry….."

"Miss Sakaki….tell me….."

"Y-Yes…?"

"When's his birthday? I'll have to get him a present so he's not mad at me. I need his vote!"

* * *

With all of the homework done, Sakaki wanted to show off something before the girls had to go home. She loaded her own save, and headed into her three story abode.

"Whoa….!"

The entry floor had a heart theme, with every piece of furnitude pink and baring well, hearts. It was coordinated to a T. Upstairs, the room was a little plain, but it contained stands for each one of Sakaki's wardrobe.

"Your clothes are in the attic?" Kaorin queried. "How long does it take to get this stuff?"

"Hmm….months and months of playing." Sakaki moved downstairs, but there was a sight that horrified all four girls immediately. She hadn't played in a little while, so the floor was crawling with tiny roaches.

"Ew ew ew ew!" Kaorin _hated_ roaches. "Call the exterminator!"

"No….you have to do it….."

Sakaki's villager ran over two of them, creating tiny ghosts that rose up from their bodies. She hated killing them, packets of data they were, but she couldn't let her house get infested. What if people visited her town?

"Oh….Miss Sakaki, are you crying?"

She sniffled and wiped her eyes. "No….I'll get over it…."

"Well, that's my campaign promise," Osaka said. "No more roaches."

Then another scurried by, making the girls scream.

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is it wrong that I want Kaorin to play HuniePop? (lmao)
> 
> I couldn't be bothered to look up the specific dialogue for villagers. And like with Pokemon, even though the characters live in Japan, I use the English names for my own convenience.
> 
> Next Game - Super Mario 64, Tomo Rage Quit Edition [Tomo, Chiyo, Yomi, Kagura, Osaka, and Sakaki]


	12. Super Mario 64

Kagura had showed off Melee and Sakaki had showed off Animal Crossing, so now it was Tomo's turn yet again! When her mother checked her temperature, and it was low enough to go to school, she cheered.

"Um….Tomo, are you happy you're going to school?"

The wildcat raced out of bed and rummaged through her closet to find the N64 yet again.

"Tomo! You're not staying home and playing video games!"

"It's for after school, Mom! Oh by the way, I'm bringing my friends over again! Gotta rush to the store for some snacks!"

"H-Huh….?"

Tomo threw on her clothes, grabbed some juice from the fridge, and raced out of the door at top speed.

* * *

"Goooood morning, Yukari!"

Yukari nearly dropped her chalk. "Tomo. You're…." she checked the clock. " _not_ late for once? What's going on?"

"Oh, it's nothing you stuffy old teachers need to worry about. Where's Chiyo-chan?"

"In her seat. What do you mean, old?! I was living out my youth the other day! Nyamo and I were playing-"

"Yeah, that's great, don't care, bye!"

She zoomed over to Chiyo, who was talking out her school books. Her face brightened when she saw her friend. "Tomo! Are you feeling better?"

"You know it! I hope you're ready for today's game!"

 _Game?_ Yukari listened carefully.

"Bring the whole gang after school, because the six of us are gonna conquer one of the greatest video games to have crossed mankind!"

* * *

In Kimura's class, a cold feeling suddenly went down Kaorin's spine, as if she was missing out on something.

* * *

"Um, okay. I hope you're not too mad you didn't get to play yesterday…."

"Nonsense! The whole point of this is to make sure YOU are enriched with video games! Now, where's the journal?"

Chiyo took it out of her bag and handed it over. Tomo flipped through it.

"What the…..Miss Sakaki had you play _Animal Crossing_?"

"Yes. Tomo, Miss Sakaki likes-"

"-Are you sure Osaka didn't write something down? Because she was jealous it wasn't her turn?"

"…"

* * *

"So what are we gonna play today?" Osaka asked Yomi, as the girls headed over to Tomo's house. "I hope it's more Smash."

"I have no idea, Osaka. I wouldn't be surprised if it's something completely obscure."

"She mentioned it was for the Nintendo 64…." Sakaki frowned. "But that only has four controller ports."

"Ah, we can just take turns," said Kagura.

When they entered Tomo's room, however, the image of a smiling, floating Mario head on the screen made Osaka fall to her knees.

"They…..cut off Mario's head…."

"Uh, not even close." Yomi put her bag down. "Super Mario 64?"

"Yes ma'am!" Tomo grinned and pointed to the cartridge. "This bad boy is the cornerstone of 3d platforming! I figured, since we found Chiyo-chan playing the original Mario, she needs to upgrade!"

"Wow! I've heard a lot about this game."

"We're gonna get all 120 stars in a single playthrough! Together!"

Everyone stared at Tomo like she had just said 2+2=5 or dogs evolve into cats. (hint: neither of those things are true)

_"Why?"_

"Because this is our senior year, and we need to strengthen the bonds of friendship! Look, I've got it figured out. We all take turns playing, we all do our homework blah blah, and at the end-" Tomo held up a camera. "We document it and post it online!"

"….."

"Oh don't give me that look! 6 of us, that's 20 stars each! Chiyo should go first, since she needs some practice."

* * *

**[Opening]**

"So the Princess has a cake for us…..we'd better hurry to her before Bowser comes!" After Mario jumped out of the warp pipe, Chiyo began to move him around. "Whoa…the controls…."

"Perfect, aren't they?"

Before entering the castle, Chiyo had made Mario jump around, climb trees, and long jump. Smiling, she headed inside the castle.

Then came the dramatic music sting and Bowser's laughter.

"Oh no! She got captured!"

"Yeah, protip, we don't play Mario games for the story," Tomo deadpanned. "Head through that door and let the adventure begin!"

* * *

**Star #1 – Big Bob-Omb on the Summit**

The first level was like a playground for Mario. Obstacles here and there, but it had enough space to move around freely and continue the high momentum, speedy play. Once Chiyo got to the top of the mountain, King Bob-Omb challenged her.

"Let's go, then…."

However, simply throwing him off did not work, as he would rise back up.

"Oh no!" Chiyo moved Mario around to outspeed the king and attack differently. Luckily, it didn't take long for him to be defeated, handing over the first power star of the game.

"You did it! 1 down, 119 left!"

* * *

**Star #8 – Plunder in the Sunken Ship**

Now it was Sakaki's turn. She had to admit, Mario controlled pretty well, and at least the music was pleasant. The music for Jolly Roger Bay was extremely calming, so much so that she was starting to daydream about riding a dolphin-

"Sakaki! Mario's asleep, you gonna move or what?"

"Oh…." Blushing, she moved the plumber ahead, into the water. She figured Tomo would've played next but the wildcat HATED water levels. The title of the mission gave a good clue on what to do, as many in the game would do later on.

Mario got closer and closer to the ship.

"I wonder what's inside? Gold? Jewels? Besides the star, of course," Kagura said. "Hey, what did you get for this question right here…."

Sakaki edged Mario closer and closer – there was the entrance! She smiled, moved the controller stick and ahead and-

"KYAAAAAAAAH!"

The terrified, girlish shriek was not Chiyo, but her, as an eel had emerged from the hole to zap Mario and knock him away.

"That's….not a dolphin….!"

"Miss Sakaki! Mario!"

Poor Mario ran out of air and drowned. He kept getting hit by the eel.

* * *

**Star #17 – Castle's Secret Slide**

Yomi had enough experience with the game to know of an easy one to do. She headed through the right door and into the painting, where Mario dropped down to a slide area.

"Whooooa! This castle's filled with secrets!" Osaka's eyes were shining. "No wonder why Bowser wants to make a theme park here."

"O-Osaka, you have your game characters mixed up…"

Yomi felt confident enough to slide down backwards, like she saw in some videos (not that she would admit she sometimes she watched those). Once Mario crossed the finish line, she turned around and smirked. "Easy, am I right?"

Tomo guffawed. "You forgot the second one for getting a slower time~"

"Great, so I'll just replay it."

"HEY! You don't get two easy ones in a row, Yomi!"

* * *

**Star #30 – Go on a Ghost Hunt**

Tomo had showed Osaka the entrance to the level in the courtyard – a cage encompassing a spooky mansion that Mario shrunk down into. Big Boo's Haunt.

"It's mighty creepy, Tomo…..c-can we go back?"

"You're the one that wanted to come here."

Osaka moved Mario inside, where the creepy music only made her more nervous. There were doors everyone and she had no idea on where to go. When she opened a certain door, Tomo froze up.

"Osaka….n-no….you didn't…."

"Didn't what? Aw, it's just a piano, Tomo. Ain't nothin' scary about that."

When Mario crossed by it, however, the piano's top came alive and bared its rows of sharp teeth, trying to take a chomp out. This time all of the girls freaked out.

Sakaki just fainted.

* * *

"Don't you think it's getting late, Tomo?" Chiyo asked. "I mean, this game is fun, but do you really think we can do 120 stars?"

"YES! Don't worry, I called all of your houses and said it's a sleepover."

"When did you do _that?"_

* * *

**Star #47 – Stand Tall on the Four Pillars**

The journey to the pyramid level was ripe with danger, and Tomo had to get Mario onto the four pillars around the pyramid. First one was a piece of cake.

The second and third had to be achieved via Wing Cap, the powerup that allowed Mario fly. And the fourth one…was surrounded by lethal quicksand.

"Ha….all I need is to land perfec-oh crap!"

XXXX

"This time I can-HEY!"

The condor had bumped into Mario, causing him to fall and sink to his doom.

XXXXX

"Third time is the charm!"

This time Tomo completely forgot to get another Wing Cap.

* * *

**Star #60 – Talk to Toad**

_"Stop it Yomi!"_

* * *

**Star #61 – Talk to a Different Toad**

"Don't give me that look," Kagura said. "It was an accident! It worked once, right?"

* * *

**Star #70 – Shocking Arrow Lifts!**

"Ohhh…." Chiyo looked up at the clock. "I hope someone remembers to feed Mr. Tadakichi…." She yawned and looked around for another world to go into. "Tomo….those stairs said we need 70 stars for the final battle. We could finish soon!"

Osaka and Kagura were asleep, leaning on each other.

"But Chiyo-chan…."

So were Sakaki and Yomi.

"….darn it, I'm sorry. Maybe this got outta hand." Tomo glanced at the snack wrappers and trash. "What was I thinking? Only the pros can play this fast!"

"Well….." Chiyo hated seeing Tomo in a bad mood. "Maybe the two of us can power through and finish the game together. I'll copy the save so if the others want to do it, they can. It'll be a memory, just you and me!"

"R-Really?"

Chiyo nodded.

"YAY! You're the best, Chiyo-chan! The rest of the 50 stars are OURS! ….one problem, though."

"Oh?"

"If I scream really loud and attempt to throw the TV out of the window, stop me, because we've ignored all of the really really hard ones."

"?!"

* * *

**Star #75 – Mystery of the Monkey Cage**

The level for this star was vertically focused, where Mario had to go up a giant mountain. A bottomless pit awaited him for falling too far. Once Tomo got far enough, a monkey snatched Mario's hat.

"Give me that back, jerk!"

Mario ran to grab him, but the monkey was too quick. Tomo got too far to the ledge, however, and she slipped off….into death. She glared at the TV.

"U-Um, let me do this one, Tomo!"

When Chiyo replayed the level, she got up the mountain faster. She gotten used to using the Long Jump whenever possible to keep momentum ahead.

* * *

**Star #80 – Hazy Maze Cave (100 coins)**

"it's time, Chiyo-chan, to REALLY get intense! Every level has a 100 coin challenge! LET'S GO!"

Mario fell into the rock pit around coin #45.

Mario choked in the toxic maze around coin #67.

"THIRD TIME'S THE CHARM!"

On coin #95, he took too much fall damage. Tomo had underestimated the jump.

"ARRRRRRGH!"

* * *

**Star #87 – Somewhere Over the Rainbow**

Rainbow Ride was 50% bottomless pit.

"OH COME ON!"

"T-Tomo! Put the TV down!"

* * *

**Star#? - ?**

"Good morning, girls, you all should get ready for…." Tomo's mother blinked at the sight before her. Chiyo and Tomo had their backs to the door, and they were fixated on the screen. Both of their eyes were bloodshot.

"Jump here."

"Yes."

"Okay go go go, grab his tail," the wildcat said monotonously. Mario seized Bowser and began to swing him around. Chiyo glanced at her notes.

"Okay, I need to release him at approximately 37 degrees in the next five seconds."

"Um, girls, are you okay?"

"Fine mom," Tomo said in the same monotone voice. They had been playing Mario throughout the whole night, and it was no exaggeration that the last 20 stars had been very reset heavy. Chiyo swung him around one time, and the arena changed into a star formation. "Okay…..here's our 15th try, Chiyo-chan."

"Yes," she said in the same voice as Tomo. "….Tomo, I think my eyeballs are going to fall off."

"Sssh. You just have to grab him one more time."

**"So long, eh, Bowser?"**

Bowser smashed into the last bomb and was promptly defeated. He released the endgame star, which stood floating right in front of Mario.

"We…did it…..?"

"We…..DID….." Tomo's face came back to life. "WE DID IT! HAHAHAHA! WE BEAT SUPER MARIO 64 IN JUST 15 HOURS!"

Chiyo fell asleep, snoring loudly. Tomo ran over and grinned into her video camera.

"And THAT was the first episode of Takino Productions! Tune in tomorrow for next ep-" she fell asleep, too.

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry Tomo, Youtube has an upload limit.
> 
> Next Game - Trauma Center: Under the Knife [Chiyo, Yomi, and Chihiro]


	13. Trauma Center: Under the Knife

"Ohhh….."

Poor Chiyo was still tired from her gaming marathon with Tomo, even though a whole day passed and she managed to catch up on sleep. It was fortunate Yukari didn't give out a test or anything like that. She sat down in the cafeteria with her lunch.

"Hey," Yomi greeted, sitting down next to her. "Still burnt out from Tomo?"

"I was too reckless, Yomi. We had a system! Ohhhh…."

"I wouldn't worry about it. Tomo is too busy editing down the footage so you get a break."

"Wait a second…." Chiyo gasped. "It's YOUR turn, Yomi!"

Said girl only sighed and picked at her food. "So?"

"Hello!" Chihiro, Kaorin's best friend, sat down across from them. "Boy, you look pretty beat, Chiyo-chan! Gonna sleep some more after lunch?"

The prodigy covered her face in embarrassment. Then she heard a distinct clicking sound and a familiar jingle. She looked up to see Yomi, with her DS.

"Take a look," she offered.

"No way! That's one of Atlus's games, right?" Chihiro smiled.

The title was **Choshitto Caduceus** , known as **Trauma Center: Under the Knife** internationally. Hospital scenery and nurses adorned the opening cutscene. The game itself was controlled with the stylus.

"It's a surgery simulator?"

"Yep." Yomi tapped the screen to skip all of the cutscenes, as she had played through the game before. "I think games that make me think a little, Chiyo. I'll show you how it's done."

"Can I watch?" Chihiro moved her lunch to the other side of Yomi, who only nodded.

* * *

Chiyo was a little squeamish to see a (video game) body being dissected open, but thankfully the DS wasn't known for its realistic graphics. On the sides of the bottom screen were icons for the surgerical tools – gauze, a syringe, antibiotic gel, forceps, and more.

"W-W-Why are we operating on her?"

The text mentioned something called **"GUILT".**

"…?"

"It's a disease, Chiyo-chan!" Chihiro explained. "Little bacteria alien-like pests crawling around and messing up your body!

"Aliens?! What?!"

"Don't worry," Yomi clicked the forceps. "It's only a video game."

This particular GUILT form was Triti, which took the form of gel-filled triangles punctuated by crystal-like structures. Once Yomi took out one triangle, it would just regenerate.

"See? It's a puzzle."  
Chihiro gasped when Yomi moved to take out the crystals in a specific order, which hindered the regeneration of each unit.

"Y-Yomi, this is like the hardest mission in the game!"

"Not really," she said offhandedly, "ever play the Wii remake of this game? It gets brutal in the extra missions."

The vitals of the patient dropped with each triangle, so Yomi had to hurry. The green numbers had already turned yellow, in the middle range.

"Ohhhh it's slowing them down!"

"Yep."

The threat defeated, Yomi was able to stitch up the patient and finish the mission. Her score was calculated on performance and time points.

**B**

Chihiro cheered. "I can only get Cs….let me try one, Yomi! Please?"

"Chiyo-chan?"

"Ohh….it's only fair if Chihiro gets to try first," said the pigtailed girl. So she did, eagerly selecting a different mission. "Say….I was wondering something."

"Hmm?"

Chiyo gulped. "Are….are our classmates saying something? Because Yomi, Tomo, Osaka, Kagura, Sakaki, and myself….we all play video games together now."

Chihiro thought for a few seconds. "Nooo, but Yukari-sensei is getting suspicious. And Kaorin was gushing on how she was at Miss Sakaki's house playing Animal Crossing."

The mission she chose involved a new strand of Guilt, called Pompeti, right on someone's liver. It took the form of small bumps surrounding a shielded core. The tool for THIS job was the laser.

"Gotta be careful you don't burn the patient, Chiyo. Most of the game you fight these things!"

"Chihiro, you know you and Kaorin are welcome to join in. Just…don't invite everyone in the class. It's a special thing we've started," said Yomi. Chiyo nodded.

"That sounds great! Ha….but only I have handhelds…."

* * *

With only ten minutes of the period left, Chiyo had to get in some exposure! So the DS was passed to her.

"What mission should I do?"

"Hmmm….." Yomi scrolled through the list. "….this one could be interesting…." The selection made Chihiro nearly spit out her soda.

**3-6: An Explosive Patient**

"Sounds like gastral distress!"

"Not exactly."

It wasn't; the in-game mission didn't involve a patient at all, but rather….a bomb. Poor Derek Stiles had to disarm an actual **bomb.**

"WHAT?!"

"The first part is easy!" Chihiro pointed to the forceps. "just uncurl the screws."  
"W-W-With a medical forceps? That doesn't sound safe!"

But Chiyo picked it. The game warned Chiyo that being inaccurate three times would make the bomb go off, which made her hand shake rapidly.

"Just relax, Chiyo…."

The kicker was that screws in the opposite corner needed the reverse motion to take out. The plate was taken off; the first part was clear.

"Phew…."

Then Chiyo saw the flashing hexagons of the core.

"I have…..to SHOOT these?!"

"Not the red ones, you'll blow up," Yomi said.

"WAAAH!"

Chihiro guided her hand. "Just go steady, okay?"

It started off smooth and steady: hexagons were blown off with plenty of safe space, but as the core rotated around, more of the DEAD zone was revealed. Chiyo bit her lip, but focused hard.

"There she goes…."

Ten remained, but only four were clustered together. The others were in different positions on the spherical core, and the window was available for only a short time.

"Three more!"

Yomi and Chihiro leaned in.

"O-One….left…!" _Almost….there…!_

 **DING DING**  
The bell rang, which startled Chiyo so much that her hand slipped:  
**KABOOM**

"AAAAAAH!" she screamed, alarming everyone in the cafeteria. "I'M SORRY! I DIDN'T MEAN TO BLOW US UP!" She looked around and blushed when she caught their looks. "It's…..um….a video game…?"

"GIMME THAT!" Yukari snatched the DS out of her hands. "Don't worry, kids, you can get back to class without focusing on Mihama's _video game addiction!"_

"But Miss Yukari I-"  
"Sssh! Tell me how to do that, because it sounds cool as hell!"

Yomi sweatdropped. _Is she our teacher or Tomo's twin?_

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next game: Five Nights at Freddy's [Chiyo, Tomo, Osaka, Kagura, Yomi, and Sakaki]


	14. Five Nights at Freddy's

"Chihiro!"

Kaorin dashed into Yukari's classroom, where her friend was helping two other students clean up the classroom for the next day.

"Hey Kaorin….why do you look so out of breath?"

"Because I've got a game for the girls to play!" she exclaimed, fishing in her bag. "Don't tell me they left already!"

"Yeah…..? You know about that, too?"

Kaorin sighed. "Yeah. I wanted to join in…."

* * *

"Join in? What are you talking about?"

Yukari and Nyamo were driving away from the school in the Yukarimobile. Said teacher looked annoyed as she held the steering wheel with one hand (Nyamo was shaking already)

"Chiyo, Tomo, Yomi, Sakaki, Kagura, and Osaka have been playing video games together for almost two weeks now! Like it's some little club! And they don't ask _me_?"

"You're their teacher and 10 years their senior."

"You're never too old to play video games, Nyamo! ARGH! Maybe I should enter that speedrunning marathon in America….it's only three months away!"

Nyamo sighed. "Who's the adult here….."

* * *

Today was Osaka's turn for a video game. The five other girls reached her house, and Chiyo rang the doorbell. Osaka's mother opened it up.

"Oh, hello, y'all. You're Ayumu's friends, right?"

"You know it, Mrs. Osaka!" Tomo said obliviously.

"Well come on in!"

XXXXX

Osaka's house was not as….eccentric as some of the girls were expecting, and they found their friend in the den, sitting at the family computer. "Great! You guys made it! Didja get lost?"

"Enough chitchat, Osaka! You told us this would be a really intense game…."

"Sure did." She clicked around, opening files. "They say it's a spooky game made in America…."

"S-Spooky?" Chiyo gulped.

"Wait, America?" Kagura squinted. "How did you even learn about it?"

"Aw, some people online." Osaka had her Steam page open on the side. "But I ain't gonna play without my friends!"

When she loaded the game up, the other girls were taken aback. The screen was dark, but the appearance of a creepy-looking bear animatronic was in the shadows.

**Five Nights at Freddy's**

"Oh no…." Sakaki scooted back. She had a _very_ bad feeling about this.

"Hmph! Well, I'M playing first!" Tomo plopped down in the computer chair while Osaka left to get regular chairs for the others. "New game, new game!"

A newspaper clipping was circled – the "player" had found a new job as a security guard at a pizza place. They had to work six hours, from 12 AM to 6 AM.

"That thing is creepy…" Kagura muttered. Soon Osaka came back with the chairs.

"Uh m-maybe w-we should do s-some h-homework and let T-Tomo play…" Chiyo said, sweating already, but she was fixed to the screen. It was a first person view of the security office, with two mechanical doors on the side. There was a power percentage and the time of day.

"Hey the phone's ringing!" Tomo moved the mouse to click (it didn't do anything).

It was someone talking about the job description, albeit in a rather lazy and vague way, setting off alarm bells for Sakaki and Chiyo. Tomo, being Tomo, wasn't paying attention and instead…was flipping through the camera feeds.

"Booooring….we just have to watch this place? I'll bet we get to shoot some bad guys! America loves that kind of stu-"

She had stopped on the feed of the ballroom. The shadows of the titular Freddy and the others stood there…motionless….but _ominous._

 **"The characters DO tend to wander a bit…."**  
"Wander?"

"Weren't you listening?" Yomi demanded. "They go into this security mode during the night."

"WHAT?! H-How are w-we supposed to stop them….?!" Chiyo clutched onto Sakaki. She clutched back, equally nervous.

"Aww we'll be fine!" Tomo switched back to the office. "See? We got some doors! CLICK!" She set both of them down. "Easy pleasy!"

"It can't be _that_ easy."

"Wait a minute, Tomo, do we have a gun?" Osaka asked.

"Hmmmm…nope! Real great game, Osaka, you can beat it in five minutes!"

"Uhhh…." Kagura pointed to the top corner of the screen. "It says this is only night 1. We have to do this the whole week?"

"And the doors drain the power," Yomi observed, "So I don't think you can just spam it all night to win."

"What the WHAT?!" It was true; Tomo watched the percentage tick down. "What kind of doors need power to stay _closed_?"

"Uhhh, T-Tomo…..the animatronics!"

"Oh right!" The wildcat flipped through the feeds, but it seemed Freddy and his friends weren't moving. One room, the kitchen, had no feed available.

Eventually, the power ticked down to 0%.

_"Tomo!"_

"Uh oh!"

The lights in the office turned off and the doors flew open on either side (Kagura: Why can't they stay closed, they're doors!), and a cold feeling went down the girls' spines. Luckily, just before something could pop out-

**"Yaaay!"**

Children cheered as the time hit 6:00 AM. The night was won!

"Ya did it, Tomo!"

**Night 2**

"….oh, _crap_. Uhh….who wants to play next?"

* * *

Kagura offered, although wasn't looking forward to it. Unlike Tomo, she didn't keep the doors open the whole time. She cautiously switched between cameras and the office view.

"Hey, listen. He's saying somethin' about that Foxy guy…."

"Huh?" The ballroom was missing one already, but Foxy was in a place called Pirate's Cove….staring at the player. "Oh geez…."

"This g-game is t-too scary! What are they going to do?" wondered Chiyo.

The animatronics were more active on night 2, and Sakaki shivered each time Kagura switched to one of their feeds. They were NOT cute in the slightest. They were completely terrifying.

"Hey Kagura, check the drawers for a gun."

"There's no _gun_ , Osaka!" Yomi shouted. "The point of the game is to outlast these things!"

"Gaaah!" Osaka almost fell off her chair. "B-Bird! It's outside the office!" She pointed frantically to the screen. Kagura switched over to the right corner feed. It was the haunting stare of Chica, the only female animatronic.

"Man….these things are so ug-  
 **"EEEEEEEEEEEE!"**  
"KYAAAAAAAAH!"

Kagura's scream was followed by her falling over the chair. Freddy had (somehow?) came into the office and attacked the guard!

**GAME OVER**

"L-Look at what happened…." Chiyo's shaking hand pointed to the screen. The poor guard had been stuffed into a spare suit and his eye was dangling out of the socket!

"No! No more!" Kagura got up and stomped out of the room. "I'm going to the bathroom! I am NOT playing this anymore!"

"Aw shucks. Say…." Osaka wanted to be a good host, so she pushed Sakaki closer to the screen. "You should play, Miss Sakaki."

"YEAH! She can handle these dumb puppets!" Tomo declared.

"M-M-Me? But I…." She looked to Chiyo.

* * *

"Focus on the feeds Miss Sakaki…."

Sakaki felt a little better that Chiyo was sitting next to her, moving her hand on the mouse. Likewise, the short genius could face her fears (for now) if her tall friend was by her side.

"Kagura was looking at the camera! How did he get in last time?" Tomo wondered. "You know, Yomi?"

Yomi sighed; she was _trying_ to focus on her homework (and not the game she wouldn't admit had terrified her). "Kagura didn't close the doors when she looked at the camera."

"Really?"

"Say Yomi, you know what happened to Mr. Security Guard?"

 _Can't you two just leave me alone?_ "The person on the phone said the animatronics see the guard as an exoskeleton that's escaped, so they stuff him in a suit."

Sakaki shivered again. She loved bears, but Freddy was shaping out to be the scariest of the bunch.

"Close the door!" Chiyo instructed. This time, Bonnie was skulking around the left side. She and Chiyo had a nice rhythm of checking feeds and doors, so things were going well.

**"YAAAY!"**

And night 2 had been cleared.

"I think it's Osaka's turn!" Sakaki said quickly, getting up. Osaka shrugged and sat down, and Chiyo moved away to start her own homework. But Tomo offered to be her eyes.

* * *

 **Night 3** dove into the action straight away, as Chica had already left the ballroom when the phone guy talked some more. Osaka was not as sharp of a player as Sakaki was, and Tomo's shouts weren't helping.

"The pirate cove! Don't let that fox creep get to us, Osaka!"

"Okay!"

"…..what are you doing? That's way too long to stare at him! The other feeds, Osaka!"

"Okay!"

"Stop!" Bonnie was near the bathrooms. "Crap, they're _both_ loose!"

"What about Freddy?"

Tomo moved the mouse for her; a peek at the ballroom showed it was empty. "Well that's just great! Move over, Osaka, I'm beating this!" The two switched positions.

As the ingame hours ticked on, Tomo opened and closed doors constantly, but never neglected the camera feeds. Osaka would chime in with some sharp spotting of Bonnie or Chica.

"Are they winning?" Kagura asked. "Sheesh, night 3 already?"

"Tomo watched Miss Sakaki play and she got better!" exclaimed Chiyo. "M-Maybe we can beat this game!"

Yomi looked up from her notebook.

"W-Wait, we're running low on power! But I'm being careful! It's only 3 AM!" Tomo frantically moved the mouse. "Doesn't this place have a back-up battery?!"

She got to 5 AM minutes later, but the battery was exhausted. It dropped to 0% again, the doors opened, the lights shut off…..and this time, Freddy's eyes illuminated the darkness.

"AH!"

Chiyo and Sakaki held each other again.

A music box began to play, and Tomo desperately looked at the time. _Almost there….almost there…don't kill me, Freddy!_ It continued for a few more notes, and then…and then…..!

**"YAAAAY!"**

"PHEW!" Tomo exhaled. "That was too close!"

**Night 4**

"Alright, alright, I'll play," Yomi said.

* * *

All of the girls were focused on the screen again. Yomi moved the mouse and clicked, while Tomo, Osaka, and Kagura were yelling instructions.

"Um…..g-girls…." Sakaki was listening to the phone call. Before the phone guy could finish his next piece of advice, something horrific-sounding had attacked him! _He got stuffed by the puppets?_

"Yaay Yomi! We're gonna win this!"

"Check the bathrooms again!" Kagura shouted.

"I got it, I got it!"

It was a frantic race to the finish, and the game was designed that you would NOT have a surplus of power to cheese it. As the girls watched carefully…..time slowly passed. Unfortunately, their luck would take a dramatic turn.

"Uhhhhh…..what's THAT?"

A golden animatronic was just sitting in one of the halls. The game didn't tell them about it. It wasn't in the ballroom at the start. Where did it come from?

"A glitch?" Kagura asked.

"Y-Y-Yomi….check the office….."

She pulled away, and there it was. A Golden Freddy, head slumped to the side. Exactly one second after the girls saw it-  
 **"EAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"**

-it frame-jumped to the front of the screen and screamed. And there was no game over screen. It forced the game back to the title screen.

"….."

The six girls stared at the screen. Yomi passed out. Tomo fell off her chair. Sakaki's eyes twitched uncontrollably. Kagura was queasy. Chiyo got up, walked over to the computer and pressed the off button on the monitor, then she unplugged the power. Her eyes were blank. And Osaka….

"Was that Freddy's brother?"

…..kept wondering said mystery of the game.

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had typed up part of a FNAF chapter when the story was in pre-production, but I deleted it, so had to start over :) (I won't do all of the games but at least the sequel)
> 
> Next Game - Pokemon Go [Chiyo & Kaorin]


	15. Pokemon Go

It was a beautiful day, and Chiyo had been asked if she could pick up some things from the store. Since she had to walk her dog, she opted to kill two birds with one stone.

"Be careful at this crossing, Mr. Tadakichi…." She glanced at her mother's list.

"Woof!" he looked at a squirrel but didn't give chase. Once the light changed, Chiyo crossed the street. However, she noticed Kaorin, tapping something on her phone.

"Kaorin?"

"Huh? Oh, Chiyo-chan!" She ran up to her. "Good to see you out on the town! You're….you're not playing video games with Miss Sakaki today?"

"Oh, not today. I'm getting some fresh air instead! And Mr. Tadakichi is coming with me! Mother wanted me to get a few things…."

 _This is my chance!_ Kaorin's eyes shined. _My chance to get into the circle and not be left out all the time!_ "Well, have I got the PERFECT exercise for you! Take a look."

Upon further inspection, there was a 3D diagram of the streets, with Kaorin's avatar walking on it. Chiyo saw a Pidgey pass by on the screen.

"Pokemon…..?"

"Yep! It's the mobile game that came out a few months ago. You walk around, find the Pokemon, and try to catch them! Want to join?"

"That sounds like fun! ….oh, but I don't have a smartphone."

"We can share mine, silly!"

Chiyo smiled. "Well okay then! We have plenty of time before the streetlights come on. Where should we go first?"

"Let's see…." Kaorin flipped through the app. "Ah ha! The park!"

* * *

At a brisk pace, the trio crossed more streets and passed through the alley to get to the park, where children were playing. Dogs too, which caught Mr. Tadakichi's attention.

"Hold on, boy, you can't just run off! Is it close?"

"Yep! It's a Bellsprout!" Kaorin showed Chiyo said plant-like pokemon. It was by the fountain! So they quickly got closer. Chiyo saw two kids playing with their phones too.

"Huh? Those things look a little advanced for them…."

"Aw Chiyo, everyone plays Pokemon Go!" Kaorin flung a virtual pokeball at the creature, and after two shakes, it was caught! "Yay! I didn't have that one!"

"Woof! Woof!"

"Excuse me, Mr. Tadakichi has to use the little doggie's room…"

XXXX

Chiyo laughed awkwardly with the doggie bag in her hand. "You….r-really had to go, didn't you…." She threw it in the garbage can. "What do you say we find-"

"CHIYO!" Kaorin was right behind her, giving the shorter girl a jolt. "Come on, come on! We can't let those other kids beat us! They're on Team _Valor,_ ugh…."

"S-Sure."

"Here." She passed the phone to Chiyo. "You can choose what Pokémon we get next!"

"Let's see….ooh! This furry Pokémon looks cute! Right, boy?" It was an Eevee.

"Woof!"

Kaorin pumped her fist in excitement. "Lead the way, partner!"

"Yay!"

Chiyo ran ahead with phone in one hand and dog leash in the other….before hitting a tree. Her dog pulled her into it when he saw another dog.

* * *

"My head….."

"Are you okay, Chiyo-chan?"

Kaorin was leading the way instead, and the two ran down the block towards the market. At that, Chiyo rubbed her head some more and pulled out her list.

"Yeah…..oh! We need to stop! Right here."

"But Eevee's down the block…..fine! Let's go!" Kaorin snatched the list and ran into the store.

Chiyo and Mr. Tadakichi followed her, only to see her disappear down the aisle. They heard the sharp squeaking of her sneakers making turns, as if she was racing to accomplish the task.

 _"Clean up on aisle 2!"_ shouted the intercom. Five minutes later, Chiyo saw Kaorin emerge from the other side, covered in flour.

* * *

One cleaning and check-out later-

"Oh, this store didn't have the last thing on the list. I guess we're still on a Pokemon hunt!"

Kaorin shivered and handed her phone over again. "The Eevee got away….I'm an idiot…."

"It's not so bad! Look, there's this cute yellow mouse!"

"Huh?! You don't know what a Pikachu is?"

Chiyo frowned. "Well no, I only played Mario before all of this started. I've seen it on keychains and shirts, is it popular?"

"AH!" Kaorin dropped to one knee. "This was stupid….this whole plan was stupid!"

"Plan?"

"I….I want to join your game group! If I impressed you enough….."

"That's silly, Kaorin. We were classmates for two years, aren't we friends? If you want to play with us, all you had to do was ask!"

"REALLY?!" all of her enthusiasm returned in an instant. "So we can play every day after school?!"

"Um, on the days we ca-"

"THE HUNT CONTINUES!" Kaorin stood up with pride. "You wanted that Pikachu, right, Chiyo? So let's get it! It's just two blocks towards the butchery!"

XXXX

The girls and dog headed down the sidewalk, stopping at the next crossing. The light had to change. In the corner of Chiyo's vision, she saw a teenage boy fiddling with his own phone.

"Ha! He's probably hunting Pikachu too!" Kaorin snickered.

But he didn't stop, in fact, he wasn't looking where he was going!

"STOP!"

Chiyo's firm voice not only made the boy freeze, it stopped the driver coming his way, an elderly couple, a mother with her baby, and a certain homeroom teacher coming out of the bank.

"…..?"

"Don't you see what you're doing? You have to look both ways when crossing the street, always! And the light wasn't clear for pedestrians to walk. Please be more careful."

"Oh….I'm sorry…." The boy didn't know what to say. A 12 year old was giving him a speech his own mother would give.

"That's alright. Here." Chiyo took his hand. "We can cross the street together."

Seeing the stares, Kaorin laughed awkwardly.

XXXX

"Here it is!"

Right in front of the shop was the Pikachu, on Kaorin's phone. She handed it to Chiyo.

"Wish me luck, Mr. Tadakichi!" She flung the first ball…..

**"Pikachu!"**

….and it smacked it away!

"?! Is this a glitch?" Kaorin gasped. "They're not supposed to fight back!"

"Come on, Pikachu, we can be friends!" Chiyo flung the second ball. It caught the electric mouse, but it only shook once before releasing it.

"One more should do it, Chiyo!"

"H-Here goes!"

Chiyo swiped her finger, and the ball captured Pikachu yet again. It shook once….twice…..three times….before it clicked. She did it!

"YES! WE CAUGHT IT!" Kaorin grabbed the genius and jumped up and down with her…..stopping once she saw the confused look of the butcher through the window. Lucky for Chiyo she could get the last item there.

* * *

With the sun now setting, Chiyo and Kaorin were about to part ways. The latter was rubbing Mr. Tadakichi's back, to thank him for being a good Pokémon sidekick!

"I had a really fun time today, Kaorin, hehehe…."

"Thanks, Chiyo. I'm so glad you're letting me play! Ohh, it's going to be so much fun!"

"There's just one catch….we have a system of rotation. I think next time is Kagura's turn."

"Huh? Do _you_ suggest any video games to the girls?"

Chiyo giggled. "The whole point of this is to expand MY library! And every time, I learn something new and amazing about them….I can't wait to see what we're playing next!"

She and Kaorin waved at each other, before heading off in opposite directions. Unfortunately for Chiyo, once she exited the park, a firm hand tapped her shoulder. She turned around, scared it was a thief….but it was something scarier.

"M-Miss Yukari?!"

"Chiyo….enjoying a nice _stroll_ with your dog?"

"Yes m-ma'am!"

"Enough with that! You and Kaorin were goofing with off a mobile game! I had better hopes for you! Everyone knows mobile games aren't REAL games!"

"But I…."

She jabbed Chiyo's nose. "Where's _my_ invite?"

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have a very very amazing chapter planned for Yukari, but I'm not gonna spoil it. Just know I dropped a hint to it last time.
> 
> Next Game - Yoshi's Island (Tomo & Sakaki)


	16. Yoshi's Island

It had been a quiet evening for Sakaki. She came home, did some studying, fed and washed her pet, ate a comfortable dinner with her parents, and now, she had finished her homework.

_Mm…..what to do now?_

She took a shower, changed into her pajamas, and sat on her bed. She looked at the clock. It was only _7:30._

_Maybe Mayaa wants to play?_

The cat was fast asleep in the corner of her room.

_I guess…I go to bed….?_

"Good evening, Miss Sakaki!"

"?!"

Standing in her doorway was none other than Tomo. Of all of her friends that would be in her house alone with her, Sakaki had to admit she was on the bottom of the list.

"Tomo…..I don't m-mean to be rude, but why….are you here….?"

"Ah, I think I left my math book here the other day," said the wildcat casually, as she began to rummage through the closet and the dresser. "My mom told me to find it! And don't worry, your folks know I'm here."

 _But it's 7:30….Mother and Father always read at this time…_. Sakaki's mind wandered, thinking of the (surely disruptive) way Tomo knocked on the door and explained herself.

"Nuts! It's not here."

"But Tomo, you haven't been in my house before," Sakaki said.

"Huh? We played Animal Crossing."

"That…..was with Chiyo and Kaorin," the tall girl replied. Tomo stared at her, confused, but then she gave her famous laughter.

"Oh yeah! Say, we don't WE play a game while we're here?"

"Uhh….." her eyes drifted to her kitty pajamas, while Tomo was still dressed in her school uniform. Come to think of it, why did Tomo wait until SEVEN THIRTY to do this?

* * *

"Geez, Miss Sakaki, you don't play too many games, do you?" Tomo eyed her shelf.

"Er…." Had she ever been with Tomo alone before? "I'm sorry if they're not…..cool…..?"

"Nonsense!" Tomo spotted a Yoshi plushie on the bed. "Wait wait! If you're a Yoshi fan, then you MUST have his best game!"

"Actually Yoshis have no gender. They're more of its. This makes them a good partner to Birdo, since originally they were described as-" Sakaki trailed off, as Tomo just looked lost. "I mean…."

"Yoshi's Island! Do you have it?"

She did, but not in the original format (Super Famicom). She did have the GBA port, and the Gamecube GBA disc player…

XXXXX

A flash of brilliant colors greeted the two at the title screen, as a 3D rendering of the island rotated around.

It was actually a good choice for the both of them – Sakaki liked the cute world of Yoshi, while the gameplay wasn't *too* cute that it would bore Tomo.

"Okay! Let's alternate levels, Miss Sakaki!"

"Um…please don't shout too loud. This is Mayaa's bedtime, and my parents enjoy their literature in peace." Sakaki stood up. "Would you like some tea?"

"Sounds great to me!" Tomo answered, already hammering through 1-1. The goal of the game was to use the Yoshis to escort Baby Mario. Every time when Yoshi got hit, he would only have 10 seconds to get the baby back or else he lost a life.

Sakaki watched her play for a few moments. Tomo clearly knew the game inside and out, as Yoshi moved fast and every egg throw was accurate. Then again, it was only 1-1.

When Sakaki came back into the room, her clock told her it was a quarter to 8. Tomo was already on 1-3. "Um…m-may I play now?"

"Oh sorry!" Tomo paused the game and took her cup. "So you like this cutesy stuff, huh?"

Sakaki set the tray down. Was this the moment where her cool perception disappeared? She didn't mind, since Chiyo liked her for who she was, and that was good enough for her.

"You're cooler than I thought!"

 _WHAT?_ Sakaki took the controller but now _she_ was the confused one.

"Yeah. You could probably waltz to school tomorrow in those very pajamas, and everyone would want a set because _you're_ wearing them! Cute is cool now! I get it! _Very_ avant-garde of you, Miss Sakaki."

"…"

"C'mon, play! I want to see your skills!"

"Okay…" Sakaki decided to take that one as a win and move on. She had experience with the game as well. Each level the Yoshi color changed, with 8 in rotation. The third level was always aqua blue.

Yoshi was underground.

"Hey….you actually go for the red coins and stuff?"

"Mm-hmm." Each level had 20 points worth of said coins, along with 5 flowers worth 50 points, and 30 stars that represented Yoshi's time. "I like to improve my score."

"Well, I'm more of a speedy player, if that's believable."

Sakaki couldn't help it; Tomo's reply was _so_ self-unaware that she giggled quietly.

"Huh? What was that?"

"Ah ha….nothing, Tomo. Would you like you play the first fortress?"

"Sure!"

XXXXX

1-4 was filled with enemy Shy Guys, spiked balls, fireballs, and falling walls, but Tomo chugged along. She decided to take a page from her friend and shoot at one of the flowers.

"So what other games you like? Shooters?"

Sakaki winced. "Not at all. I don't like _violent_ video games. I like _fun_ ones." She blushed slightly. Was her response a little childish?

"HAHAHAHAHA! If only the developers listened to YOU! There's too much triple A trash out there. Western games are the worst! Like, how many Call of Duty games do we need?"

"Call of….what? Oh!" Mayaa had woken up and moved over to Tomo's lap. "Careful Tomo, don't spook him."

"Whatcha mean?" Mayaa was fixated on the screen. When Sakaki tried to move him, he swatted her hand away. "Aw, the little guy wants to watch!"

"….."

Finally she reached the boss, Burt the Bashful. The way to beat him was to pepper him with eggs until he got small enough to beat. Mario flew off a few times, but Yoshi snagged him back.

When the score came up, Tomo had **97** points. Losing three seconds from Yoshi's counter had cost her.

"…..Again!"

"Huh?"

"Why not try to 100% the first world, Miss Sakaki?" Tomo quickly began the level again. "Yeah, you get those secret levels in this version for getting enough points!"

"The first world…." _Well, it's 8:15 now. Bedtime is at 10:00…..surely we can do it, together._ Sakaki smiled. "Okay, but lower the volume a bit. Mother and Father should be in bed now."

"Eww! Don't they wait until you're asleep, like mine?"

"…."

"…."

"OH! You're talking about actually sleeping?"

Poor Sakaki had fainted from the implication.

* * *

1-5 was a scrolling level where Yoshi & Mario had to move through falling donut platforms. Surprisingly, neither girl liked scrolling levels.

"Argh! You can't go too fast!"

As for Sakaki…..

"I fell again…at this rate, I'm going to run out of lives. I keep missing that third flower." She restarted the level yet again. "What's with that look, Tomo?"

"Oh, I play the original off my dad's Super Famicom. The songs got kinda neutered for the GBA version. Something about the sound chip or something."

_But I like these songs….._

"And in the original, Yoshi doesn't make that humming sound."

_Well that makes it inferior. Yoshi~!_

"Miss Sakaki! You missed the flower again! Give me that!" Tomo took the controller. "Mayaa, you be my good luck charm, okay?!"

She scored **100** points on her first try. Mayaa looked content.

"…."

"Your turn!"

XXXXXX

For 1-7, the theme was enemies on stilts.

"Say Miss Sakaki, you know a lot about this game, right?"

"…yes…?"

Tomo pointed to the first Shy Guy. "Didn't these guys come from Mario 2 USA? Y'know, the game where they throw vegetables?"

"I believe so," Sakaki replied. Mario 2 USA was way more fun for her than the original Mario 2. She loved using Peach and Toad.

"But in THAT game, they came from a dream world! So how are they here?"

"Um…"

"And this game came after Super Mario World, but is Dinosaur Land in that game linked to this island? Yoshi's a dinosaur, right?"

Sakaki's mind was blank.

XXXXXX

"You're still up, dear?" Sakaki's mother peeked from the other side of the door. "And still playing video games with your friend?"

Lucky for Sakaki, Mayaa was curled into a ball, and Tomo was curled into a larger ball, blocking him from view. She was snoring, and 1-8 remained unfinished.

"Ah, we were just going to go to bed. May Tomo spend the night?"

"Well…..I suppose. Do open the window, it's a little stuffy in here."

"Yes. Good night, Mother."

When the door closed, Sakaki got up, opened the window, draped a blanket over Tomo, and looked at the TV screen.

_It was fun playing with you, Tomo. Maybe…..we can do this together like you and Chiyo for Mario 64…._

Sakaki gave a Mayaa a goodnight kiss before shutting all the lights and crawling into her own bed. "Sweet dreams, Tomo."

Five minutes later.

"WHA?! I WAS RESTING MY EYES! What time is it, Miss Sakaki?!"

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Like with Pokemon, I use the English names for my own convenience. Didja know Japanese Birdo is named Katherine?  
> Also when the fic started, Yomi mentioned October (a consequence of this being a revised fic), so I guess we're sticking to late 2016 as a time frame. So no Switch games until I skip through the New Year.
> 
> Next Game - Paper Mario: the Thousand Year Door [Chiyo, Yukari, and Nyamo]


	17. Paper Mario: TTYD

"Hmm….looks good to me!"  
Nyamo smiled and put away her lesson plans for the next school day, only to hear a knock on her door. Curious, she got up and opened it up.

"Out of my way, Nyamo, the clock is ticking!"

"Yukari….C-Chiyo-chan?!"

Yukari had dragged her student along for whatever gaming ride she had planned, and the poor girl was fearful. "Time to spill the beans! You, Tomo, ALL of the girls in your little circle have been doing this video game thing without me or Nyamo!" she accused.

"I'm s-sorry….we j-just didn't want you to get in trouble…."

"After the Sonic thing? Pffft! First you play Tetris, then a mobile game?" Yukari dug through the cabinets. "It's time you see what a REAL game is!"

"Hey!" Nyamo sat down next to Chiyo. "Stop antagonizing Chiyo and let her do what she wants! Besides, um….shouldn't she be going h-home now?"

"Nice excuse, Nyamo." Yukari plugged in the last wire. "Chiyo, maybe you can help me. Little Miss Gym Teacher over there is pretty bad at video games, and she asked me to help her beat another! Consider it my entry game into this!"

Chiyo laughed nervously. "I'm sure you can join in if you want to, Miss Yukari. You don't have to brownnose me."

"Brownnose?" Yukari blinked. "Ha, you flatter me!"

"Have we gone over the fact that you technically kidnapped your student and are touching _my_ television, and _my_ gaming stuff?"  
"Nyamo, don't forget I loaned you _my_ Gamecube! Now go get us some snacks!"

 _How old are you, again?_ thought an exasperated Nyamo as she left the room.

* * *

The title screen fascinated Chiyo: it featured a 2D rendition of Mario surrounded by allies, with Bowser and Peach in the background. "A Mario game?"

"It's not a platformer, but rather….an RPG. Fancy that!"

While the world was in 3D, Mario and the others were 2D paper cutouts. Loading Nyamo's save led to Mario and a friendly Koopa Troopa standing outside a flashing building.

"Wow….ok, Miss Yukari. So if it's an RPG, it must be turn-based! Right?"

"Well, not all of them are, but that's good enough! Nyamo, give Chiyo-chan the rundown of the story."

"M-Me?" Nyamo looked like a deer caught in headlights. "Okay, um….Mario found a treasure map, and Peach got kidnapped by aliens-"  
"WRONG!"  
"Wrong?! That's exactly what happened!"

Yukari rolled her eyes and handed Chiyo the controller. "Take a spin, kiddo. See if you can find the locker room on the left side."

Chiyo moved Mario around, and checked out all functions - the menu, the map, his partner's (Koops) field ability, and noticed a small egg bouncing around with them.

"What's that?"

"Hehehe, no spoilers allowed."

Eventually Mario came back to the locker room; in this chapter's scenario, Mario had to make his way up the rankings in the Glitz Pit. At Yukari's suggestion, Chiyo had Mario accept the next fight.  
 **"Ranked 10 in the Glitz Pit - the Armored Harriers!"**

_Hehehehe…..wait until Nyamo and Chiyo see this…_

XXXXX

Mario took the stage, against two Clefts with spikes on their body. Nyamo looked very skeptical of their success, so she looked to Chiyo.

"Hmmm…." Chiyo swapped between Mario and Koops. "It looks like Mario will take damage if he jumps! So let's try…."

Koops' command was a shell toss, and all Chiyo had to do was hold left on the stick.

"O-Oh! Here we go!"  
 **PLINK**

"No damage! Don't tell me….huh?" Nyamo noticed the sly look on Yukari's face. Chiyo, after more thinking, decided to use Mario's hammer.  
 **PLINK**

"That didn't work either! Oh no…."

"Damn it, Yukari, what's the secret? We're gonna lose this fight!" The Cleft brothers attacked Mario for some nasty damage.

"Here's the secret….! Chiyo, you can take less damage if you time the hit with A, that's an action command."  
"Yukari!"

Another turn rolled by, and Chiyo tried something else - one of Mario's star powers. The silver one started a gauge of circles.

"W-What do I do?!"

"Time it right with A, again!"

Chiyo did, but the gauge had multiple levels, with more circles. Once it was done, the Star bounced on the ground for earth-based damage, but again, the brothers were unharmed.

"Uhhhhh?!"

On Koops' turn, Chiyo tried an item, but the Fire Flower didn't do anything.

"Oh no! Miss Yukari!"

"Oh gee….I guess you have to forfeit…"

"What?! Why are you saying that so casually? Is this _scripted?"_

Yukari's sly grin was a "yes".

XXXXXX

But when the defeated Mario and Koops headed back to the room, the egg that was following them was gone. That is, until the being stored inside walked up to them.

"So cute!" Chiyo gasped. "It's a baby Yoshi!"

Yoshi had more attitude and spunk than the usual dinosaur, even referencing Mario as "Gonzales", his stage name. Then the name screen came up.

"We can name it?!"

"HELL YEAH!" Yukari shouted. "Name it something good, Chiyo, because Yoshi is the ace in the hole! He'll kick the snot out of those ugly things!"

"But it's _my_ file…." Nyamo whined.

"Then it's only fair you name him," her student declared. "What should I put in?"

"But Chiyo, this was a learning adventure for _you_ …." Now Yukari was whining, as if the age differential in the room had been reversed.

"Uhhh…..oh! What about-" Chiyo quickly put the name in.

"NOO! Chiyo, how could you?!"

Minamo the Yoshi was added to the team!

* * *

Minamo was able to pierce the Cleft defenses with his Gulp attack, and Mario was promoted to the new locker room! Shinier, cleaner, and on the road to being the champ! Grubba, the promoter, was singing the praises to the "Great Gonzales".

"So is every chapter like this?"

"No way!" Yukari sipped her soda. "That's why this game is so amazing, Chiyo. Every chapter is something different! Last chapter, it was a bunch of gray things living in a tree in the middle of the woods. Right Nyamo?"

"Ugh….that one was terrible! So much backtracking…."

Chiyo giggled. "I think I've figured it all out."

"Huh? What?"

"Well, it seems like you all like different genres. Tomo likes fast-paced action games, and so does Miss Kagura. Miss Sakaki likes easier games that are cute, Yomi likes puzzles, and Osaka likes…." She shivered, thoughts of Freddy Fazbear surging through her head.

"Makes sense to me. I like all of the good stuff, and Nyamo is a total dork that likes RPGs she can't even beat."

"Hey! You know I'm not sharp enough for real-time games!"

This got the genius thinking. "You two are really close friends, huh? Because it's only friends that like to trash talk each other, right?"

"That's not true at a-"

Nyamo covered her friend's mouth. "Well, I wouldn't be inviting her over if that wasn't true."

XXXXX

So Mario and Minamo rose up the ranks, but as the plumber got further and further, a mystery began to crop up. Someone was sending notes, threats even. One led to a conversation with the bar tender outside, and then…..the team found a room upstairs covered in blocks.

"Ohh….I don't like this…"

"Me neither. Go that way, Chiyo-chan."

Now Yukari had to conceal her twisted delight. Coming up would be one of the biggest twists of the chapter.  
Up the stairs Mario went, he smashed some boxes and found-

"N-No!"

It was some of the previous fighters. They had been….crushed, literally, as their paper selves were flattened to the ground, or….drained of their vitality.

"Someone attacked them! B-But who?!"

Chiyo gasped. "No…..it can't be….."

"Who?! The offstandish Toad secretary?" Nyamo demanded. "Man, am I really getting this invited into a Mario game…?"

 _Was it the promoter?_ Chiyo thought, trying to talk to the fighters for any clues. Sadly, they weren't very responsible.

"Uh huh. You got it."  
"Huh?"

Yukari put a finger on her lips. "Ssh. You're so close."

XXXXX

After Mario and Chiyo defeated Rawk Hawk, the reigning champion, what was left? The new room was private and filled with gifts, a bed, and-

"A vent?"

Across the doorframe she jumped, and through the vent…..she landed in Grubba's office. There, she discovered the truth - it was _him_ that was draining the fighters!

"Oh crap! He came in the office?!" Nyamo exclaimed.

But Grubba quickly ran for the hills, so Mario had to chase him down into the arena itself. A boss battle seemed imminent, and Grubba was no fair fighter - his machine morphed his size into an orange titan!

"Here! We! Go!" Yukari rubbed her hands together. "You've learned well, Chiyo. Can you and Nyamo defeat Grubba and get the Crystal Star?!"

* * *

**GAME OVER**

"Uhh…..reset time?"

* * *

But the battle was won; Grubba was defeated, his secretary was reunited with her lost brother, and the Crystal Star was Mario's.

"We did it!" Nyamo happily hugged the controller. "Thank you so much, Chiyo!"

"Oh Miss Kurosawa, I was happy to experience the game with you! And thank you too, Miss Yukari!" Chiyo looked at the clock. "I'd better get home before my parents get worried…"

"I'll drive you!"

"WHAT?!"

* * *

The Minama house was only 15 minutes away. Thanks to the Yukarimobile, she got home in about 5.

"Good night! Be sure to tell Tomo to write down my game!"

"T-Thank y-you…." Poor Chiyo was white as a ghost, and she nearly fell down when she stepped out of the car into the sidewalk. But one thought turned her back to normal. "Oh. Say, are there any other Paper Mario games I could play?"

"Hmmm….."

* * *

_Nine years ago, Yukari Tanazaki stomped into the video game store and slammed her copy of Super Paper Mario onto the counter. Her right eye was twitching._

_"I want a refund, please."_

_"I'm sorry, ma'am, but we can only give store credi-"  
"REFUND!"_

_XXXX_

_Then five years after that, she nearly smashed the door to pieces and threw her copy of Sticker Star at the wall, scaring the cashier. Yukari looked demonic._

**_"Burn this game to ashes right now."_ ** _  
"S-Security!"_

_XXXXXX_

_And then, only two weeks ago this happened:_

_"Hey! You're banned from this store, ma'am!"_

_"Relax." Yukari sighed and handed over her copy of Color Splash. "It's okay. This wasn't horrible, just...eh. Not my game."_

* * *

"Just the N64 one!" she said straight-faced. "Unfortunately…."

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, I love TTYD but SPM was good too.
> 
> Next Game - Resident Evil [Chiyo, Tomo, Sakaki, Osaka, Kagura, Kaorin]


	18. Resident Evil

When Chiyo told the others about her "adventure" with Yukari, Tomo was not pleased.

"What the heck, Chiyo?!" she whispered. "You can't just invite Yukari into the mix! Knowing her, she'll probably give us extra homework if we get higher scores than her!"

"Ain't the first time Miss Yukari had some fun with us," Osaka reminded her. "Maybe if we let her win, she'll give us A's!"

Kagura's eyes shined, after she looked at the pathetic 35 she got on the quiz. Chiyo, however, was having none of it.

"This is supposed to be fun, and that's that! Miss Yukari knows so much about video games, maybe more than-"

"LALALALALALA CAN'T HEAR YOU!"

The last bell rang, and Yukari was sure to give the girls all unnaturally wide smiles, slipping in video game suggestions into their homework assignment lists.

She couldn't join today due to a facility meeting, but there WAS someone else Chiyo wanted to bring.

XXXXX

"So it's Kagura's turn again?"

Kaorin. Tomo looked annoyed again.

"Yes, I say we continue the cycle just to see how everyone likes it, then maybe we can decide on something different!" Chiyo smiled. "So what's the game, Miss Kagura?"

"Ohohohoho….never you mind…."

Kagura had a sneaky idea.

* * *

As the girls took out their books and pencils, Tomo peered over the list Yukari had given them. She had to admit, their teacher did know plenty about video games.

"Hey, what's this?"

**Special Assignment! If you all do this for me, you'll all get automatic…..okay, I can't autopass you all, especially not Tomo, Osaka, and Kagura-**

"HEY!"

**-buuuut I'll reward you somehow! Something big! Keep it between the six of you, and you better not tell Nyamo! Step 1 is listed below.**

"Whatcha reading, Tomo?"

"Aw nothing, something about a Twitch. So Kaorin! Are you ready to be a member of our gaming club?!"

"O-Of course! I'll do my best!"

Tomo sighed. "No see, you're supposed to shout really loud into the camera. My account needs more views! Man I wish Yomi was here…"

Behind them, Kagura took out her Playstation, and picked out a game from the shelf. "Today….is Oct. 31st. That's a special day in America."

"Halloween?" Sakaki wondered out loud. "What kind of game are we playing?"

"Something…..spooky. It even has a different name in America, and I think that name is cooler. _Resident Evil!"_

Alarm bells were ringing for Chiyo, Sakaki, and Kaorin. The title of the game before them was technically _Biohazard,_ but Tomo and Osaka had to agree.

"Ain't this that zombie game?"

"Z-Zombies?"

Kagura picked up the controller. "Well, yes and no. Sure they're zombies, but not they're not undead, just mutated by a virus."

"YEAH! Let's fight some mutants!"

But the controller slipped past Tomo to Chiyo. "M-Me? Oh, I don't think…."

"Relax, Chiyo. They're polygons! You can handle it."

So the game began with a choice of player character - Chris Redfield or Jill Valentine, both STARS operatives working in the _dangerous_ Raccoon City.

* * *

"W-What's going on?"

Alpha Team had been tasked in finding the lost Bravo Team, on the city's outskirts. But once they reached Bravo's downed helicopter, monstrous dogs came out to attack! To make matters worse, their helicopter pilot had fled.

So the team sought shelter in a strange mansion.

**"Captain Wesker, where's Chris?"**

"Chris?" The name was tingly on Kaorin's tongue, despite having years of English experience under Yukari. "Wait, that's the name of the other character!"

"Oh no! So, does this mean Jill gets separated if we go back and choose him?"

Kagura shook her head. "It's not that simple, Chiyo. Part of the experience is sticking to your…..er, guns, and pressing on."

The first thing Chiyo noticed was how the game even played. Movement was restricted to specific angles of the manor, and the camera could not be altered. She took a look into Jill's bag.

"AH! LOOK OUT BEHIND YOU!"  
"WHAT?!" Chiyo hastily unpaused, but nothing came out to attack Jill. "T-Tomo! Is that really necessary!"

While the wildcat laughed, the other girls watched in fascination. Jill continued through the house, opened a door, and soon reached:

 _"MUTANT!"_ Kaorin shrieked. Rather it being in the style of the game, the mutant, like the opening cutscene looked eerily realistic in FMV format. It turned around from its blood pile and looked at the camera.

"N-No thanks!" Chiyo made Jill move away as fast as she possibly could, before handing the controller to Sakaki. "I m-mean, let's share the experience!"

"You only played through the first five minutes," said Kagura.

* * *

On a scale of 1 to Freddy Fazbear, this was only a 6 or so, but Sakaki's face grew more and more anxious as she explored the mansion. Part of the challenge of the game was fighting off the mutants despite the fixed camera angles.

Furthermore, there was no telling awaited Jill when a door opened.

"Let's see….." Sakaki found a clip in one of the bedrooms.

"M-Miss Sakaki, are you okay?" Kaorin whispered. "If you need someone to hold your ha-I mean, support you, then I can take over!"

"Thank you, Kaorin, I'll keep that in mind." She had to admit, there was something….brilliant about having the door animation occur on a black screen. It added a sense of dread to the whole experience.  
Jill moved a bookshelf and found a set of music notes for the piano: Moonlight Sonata.

Both girls were mesmerized by the song…something so beautiful to offset the fact that dangerous mutants were abound.

XXXXX

Chiyo looked up from her notes, only to see Jill reunite with one of the team's members, Barry. While Tomo cared more about "killing the mutants", Chiyo had to wonder:

"Both Chris and Mr. Wesker have gone missing now, right?"

"Yep." Kagura knew the game inside and out, so she didn't look up from her (frustrating) math homework. "Why do you ask?"

"….something doesn't feel right…..I hope they can be careful…."

"Haha, Chiyo, it's just a video game."

"So? One thing I've picked on, Miss Kagura, is that certain games have more to tell. Mario was just searching for the princess, but someone like Miss Valentine is locked in a battle for her own life! I wonder what other stories there are….they don't all have to be mindless experiences, right?"

This actually made Kagura think for a bit. After jumping due to another mutant, Sakaki passed the controller to Osaka.

* * *

"Wooooow…I sure don't want to live here." Osaka was examining everything she could. "Could be lonely. Do they have a cleaning lady?"

"Osaka, we're in the middle of the woods." Tomo wanted to play, but if she didn't understand these algebra problems by next week she'd be in big trouble….again. "Just play the game!"

Jill had quite a few keys and firearms now, but Osaka was content with using the knife.

"WHAT IS THAT?!" Tomo shouted. "A COBRA?!"

Indeed, a giant snake was in one of the rooms. Jill moved around the beast's range, but it was curling around the pillar to attack….and the Osakan was mashing the button as hard as she could.

"Hehehe, the blood's green?"

"You can't kill a giant snake with a _knife!"_ Tomo yanked the controller away. She quickly selected the rifle and shot it down. "Geez! Mutants and freaky animals. This place has everything!"

"Aw, you can play now," said Osaka, "I'm getting hungry."

Kagura blinked. "Er….there might be some chips in the cabinet."

"Thanks!"

She came back with some bean paste.

XXXXX

The music got more and more ominous as the adventure continued, not that Tomo was really that scared. Sure she jumped each time a mutant came out, but she was all too eager to blast their faces off. "Ha! See, we needed this for Freddy!"

"Freddy?" Kaorin cocked her head. "Who's that?" She only looked more confused when all of the girls shivered, except for Osaka.

"Tch, later games get so gun happy." The swimmer was not impressed. "The whole point of the first one was to survive, not turn it into a FPS!"

"What's that, Miss Kagura?"  
"First person shooter."

Meanwhile, Jill found a note on the T-Virus, and how it affected a plant during its testing:  
 **"-once sensing movement, plant 42, shoots its vines around the prey and holds it. Then it starts sucking up the blood, using the suckers located at the back of its vine."**

"That might be foreshadowing…." Sakaki murmured.

"A plant boss, you mean?"

To Kagura's surprise, Chiyo was writing down all of the story beats that Tomo was mostly ignoring. She seemed far more interested in the mystery than the gameplay.

"Psst….Chiyo? Want me to tell you what happens?"

"No thank you! I want to pierce together myself, if that's okay," said the genius. "Video games are amazing!"

* * *

So the session continued for a bit longer (with Kaorin playing, who ran from every mutant she could), until Kagura's mother poked in and wondered if they were going to stay for dinner….the look on her face said she wasn't prepared for that.

Kaorin, Sakaki, Osaka, and Tomo left the room in that order, but Chiyo stared at the screen.

"I've got it…..I've got it, Miss Kagura!"

"Eh?! So quick! Okay, go for it!"

"It was….." Chiyo paused for dramatic effect. "The helicopter pilot! Think about it, he's the reason why we were stranded in the first place. He's a double agent!"

In reality, the double agent was Albert Wesker. But Chiyo looked so sure of her answer.

"Um…w-well…."

"Oh no! I'm wrong, aren't I?"

"Yeah, but that's-"

"Hooray!" Chiyo quickly saved the game and shut the console off. "There's still more to figure out! May I come over another night and pick up from where we got to?"

"Sure….?"

The prodigy ran out giggling. Like Tomo and Mario 64, this would become her "Kagura" based video game memory.

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chiyo would love Professor Layton, so I'll have to throw that in somewhere.
> 
> Next Game - Mario Party 7 [Chiyo, Tomo, Sakaki, Kagura, Yomi, Osaka, Kaorin, Yukari] (literally a game with 8 player support, lol)


	19. Mario Party 7

Tonight would be the first time Yukari would "hang out" with the other girls, for the game. And it was Sakaki's turn to pick the right game!

"Can you stop doing air quotes?" Nyamo asked, the two finishing up in the teacher's lounge. "I wouldn't get so chummy with the girls, Yukari. It's bad enough you were caught with the Mega Drive."

"Hey! Once that bell rings, I stop being their teacher and start being the best video game player out there! I'll try to go easy on them, hehehehehe…."

* * *

Yukari practically flew over to the destination via the Yukarimobile, and as if she was a giddy 16 year old, she ran up the steps and rang the doorbell.

"Hello?"

"Greetings, Sakaki-san! Ah ha….your daughter was expecting me."

"She was?" asked Sakaki's mother. "Is….she in some kind of trouble?"

"Huh? No no, that's more up Tomo's alley. How to phrase this….ah ha! She and some other students just needed help with today's lesson." Yukari then realized she had forgotten what she had taught them. Idioms? Transitive verbs?

"Oh, well….you're here early. Isn't she still at school?"

The English teacher looked at her watch. "….dang it."

XXXXX

"Is that Miss Yukari?!" Kaorin asked in shock. After an hour, the girls had finally arrived, but Yukari was sitting on the sidewalk, NOT in a happy mood.

"Where the hell were you girls?! I have to grade some papers and do boring teacher stuff later, and you're wasting my fun time!"

"We needed to get here…?" Yomi asked, fixing her glasses. "Were you just sitting on Sakaki's curb all this time?"

Sakaki herself paled. "What…did you tell Mother?"

"Don't worry, you looked like the type to have mindful parents, so I lied and said it was a study sesh. Which is technically is, right?"

"Man, sensei's the coolest!" Tomo laughed.

* * *

Luckily, Sakaki's parents had enough trust in their daughter to go out for a bit before this all happened. But the inclusion of their teacher had made the meet-ups a little more…complicated.

"Psst…..Chiyo. Our parents will start to get suspicious if they see Miss Yukari around," Kagura whispered. "Sakaki's parents are one thing but I don't think all of them will be so easy."

"She's right!" Kaorin added, also whispering. "My mom would kill me if she knew I was goofing off while studying!"

"I understand," said the prodigy. "We'll have to think of a permanent place to play! Maybe my house, since my parents know what we do….?"

Yukari, who was eavesdropping, smiled wide. "Your big mansion! Sign me up!"  
"EEP! M-Miss Yukari, don't do that!"

Sakaki pulled out her game choice from the shelf. It honestly felt a little *too* awkward for her to play video games with her own teacher, but she had practically bullied Chiyo into it, and then again, they had already taken summer trips with her. "Shall….we get started?"

Tomo grinned and turned on the video camera. "I'm ready for the views!"

"Eh? Tomo, you record your sessions?"

"Yep! Takino Productions needs more recognition out there. Plenty of Americans do it all the time, and for money!"

Yukari snorted. "Sitting home and playing video games is hardly a career choice!" The irony went completely unnoticed, but the controller set-up did not. "Hey, we're taking turns? Then I'm in the first round! It's not like _I_ have homework!"

"No, Miss Yukari, this game supports eight players." Sakaki turned on her Gamecube. "There's eight of us, so we break off in teams of two."

"Dibs on being on Miss Yukari's team!" Tomo shouted.

"D-Dibs on being on Miss Sakaki's team!" Kaorin shouted, turning red once she had realized the gravity of her sentence.

"Eh, why not? I'll try anything once." The game was:

**Mario Party 7**

XXXXX

Fortunately, there was more than just 8 characters to choose from. A 20-turn board session seemed reasonable, and the picks were Yukari as Mario (to Tomo's sourness, who was forced to pick Wario), Chiyo as Peach, Kaorin as Daisy, Sakaki as Toadette, Osaka as Boo, Yomi as Luigi, and Kagura as Yoshi.

"What board?" Tomo asked.

"Let's….choose the simplest one…"

"Boring! Pick the one with the craziest rules!"

"Ah, Chiyo-chan…" Osaka was teamed up with said girl, "I got a bad feeling about this. I ain't no good at luck games."

"You'll be fine, Osaka. We're a team!"

"Start the game already!" Yukari shouted. While she was with Tomo, Yomi was with Kagura, and the giddy/nervous Kaorin was with Sakaki.

 **Neon Heights** was the board, and its gimmick was to hunt down treasure chests across the board. One of which had the star, but the other two did not.

"Order time! Let's go!" Tomo was eager to make up for her bad luck in Mario Party 3. Everyone rolled-

XXXXX

"Woof! Tomo, what the hell? We both go last!"

The wildcat had her steaming head down on the controller. Osaka and Chiyo moved first, then Sakaki + Kaorin, and after that, Yomi and Kagura.

* * *

Once everyone went, it was time for the first minigame!

"How does this work?" Kagura read the rules. "Oh, we just share a half of the controller to jump…"

The game involved a swinging metal bar around each player, like a jump rope.

"Here we go….!" Tomo gripped hard on the R button.

Within a few seconds, Boo, Luigi, and Daisy were knocked out, at the same time. The bar moved a little faster, and it wasn't long before Mario and Peach hit the dust too.

"It's neck and neck!"

Then Yoshi lost, leaving Tomo and Sakaki. While the former was determined to win no matter what, the latter was glancing at Kaorin to make sure she wasn't too distraught.

**"Finish!"**

But in the end, Wario won, earning coins for the team.

XXXXX

"Hmmm….Chiyo- chan, should I open this?" Osaka pondered. One player of the team moved at a time, but the leader alternated each turn.

"I dunno. We have a 33.3% chance of getting that star!"

"What else?"

Chiyo blinked. "Um….coins or a bomb."

"Aw, a chance to blow up? That's kinda violent for a Mario game."

"It just takes you back to start," Yomi pointed out.

"Hmmmmmm…..it does cost all of our coins…..but I'll take it!"

To the surprise of the room, it *did* have a star, skyrocketing Peach and Boo into 1st place. Osaka looked so happy.  
"Wow! Luck's shining on me today!"

"We can beat that!" Tomo declared. "Once you get the star, the chests re-shuffle! Let's get the next one, Yukari!"

"Sounds like a plan!" but then she whispered: "Don't let Chiyo hear our strategy!"

"But….Osaka was the one that got the chest…?"

"Sssh! Who told you to eavesdrop?"

Both Sakaki/Kaorin and Yomi/Kagura got more coins from blue spaces, but Wario managed to move far enough to a new chest. Tomo took the plunge, and what did she get?

**BOOM**

"OH COME ON!"

* * *

The halfway point had been reached. Osaka and Chiyo had slipped down to second, but Yomi and Kagura had overtaken the others with consistent minigame wins. Sakaki/Kaorin were 3rd, and the brooding sensei-student team was still in fourth, with no turns.

"Tomo, you'd better NOT pick that chest! The last two you chose were all bombs!"

"But third time's the charm!"

"No!" Yukari hissed. "Do it and I'll give you a pop quiz tomorrow!"

"Excuse me?" Tomo glared back. "You're just a player like us, Miss Yukari, and in Miss Sakaki's house you have no teacher power!"

"Um…..she still does….?"  
"Sssh! I'm defending your honor, Miss Sak-HEY!" Yukari had chosen for her. "Cheater! You're a cheater, Yukari!"

"I play to win, Tomo!"

Chiyo laughed nervously. "Maybe we should take a break…..get some snacks, go over a few notes?"

"Hmph!"  
"Hmph!"

XXXX

Sakaki and Chiyo were in the kitchen getting said snacks, and the former took out some cat food to feed Mayaa. "It's getting a little too competitive with those two."

"Well, you know how they can be. Maybe we need Miss Kurosawa to keep the peace!"

"You're right. I have to say…." Sakaki flashed a smile. "I'm really enjoying this. Every time we get together, even if I don't play much or lose, it's still fun hanging out with all of you."

"I feel the same way!" Chiyo giggled. "But I was also thinking we change up the rotation somehow….now that we have Kaorin and Miss Yukari aboard. It has to be fair to everyone."

"Mm-hmm."

Once they headed back to the room, they saw Yukari just outside the door, checking her email. "YES! Hahahaha, thank you!"

"Miss Yukari, what happened?"

"Oh….let's just say I'll be taking a trip this January….hehehe…."

"Oh, for winter break?"

"Break?" Yukari double-checked the date. "C-Crap! How we supposed to make it…?"

_"We?"_

XXXXXX

"Shall we resume the game?" Chiyo asked, wiping her mouth.

"Yeah, let's," said Kagura, "I can't be out for too long today."

"Ooooh, hear that, Miss Yukari? Kagura needs to see her mommy!" Tomo laughed in her Tomo-like way. "No excuses! We're gonna wipe the floor with you!"

"But….you guys are…"  
"Don't even bother," Yomi sighed. Once it was their turn again, they picked the chest Yukari had rejected, only to nab _another_ star.

"…."

"…."

Osaka leaned over. "Tomo, are you gonna break the TV?"

* * *

One minigame was a relay between each team. The first would take a key across a narrow path to the partner, who would use it to get treasure.

**"Go!"**

Peach, Toadette, Luigi, and Mario led the charge. Yomi and Sakaki slipped a few times, leaving Yukari and Chiyo ahead to pass the key on to Wario and Boo.

"Steady….ah no!" Osaka fell in the water. Kaorin and Kagura were catching up. Once the gem was obtained, the goal was to go _back_ to the partner. This took everyone off guard.

"H-Hurry!"

Kagura and Yukari were first to hand the gem over, with Kaorin then Osaka bringing up the rear. Unforunately, everyone fell in the water.

"Stop screwing around Tomo!"

"It's not my fault! I hate the C-stick!"

**"Finish!"**

"W-Wait, I didn't get back!"

Alas, the minigame was a tie. Nobody won.

"….that's possible?" a dumbfounded Kagura asked.

* * *

Finally, it was turn 20. Osaka and Chiyo finished with 3 stars and 45 coins. Kaorin made her last move, and she reached another chest.

_Ohhh…..if I pick right, I can overtake Chiyo-chan!_

She gulped and picked the chest….and got coins as a reward.

"Oh….." she hung her head. "I'm sorry, Miss Sakaki."  
"Why? We're in second place now."  
"HUH?!"

Indeed, the team now had 3 stars and **55** coins.

"Grrrr, Tomo! We need a star to get out of the hole!"

Kagura made her last turn as well, stepping on a red space. Not that she cared, she and Yomi had 5 stars and 67 coins.

But now it was Tomo's last turn. She rolled a 7, putting Wario just enough spaces ahead to reach another chest of the set! However….she and Yukari stared each other down, for the choice.

"I have to take it, Yukari."

"Go ahead, young grasshopper," she said dramatically. "I've taught you well."

The reward….was a star, giving them 3! Both of them cheered. "Now all we need are the bonus stars! We've got the most coins, so it's in the bag!"

Sakaki then remembered something….and she inwardly gasped.

_The bonus stars…_

XXXXX

The minigame one went to Yomi and Kagura, not that anyone was surprised. Tomo and Yukari looked disappointed, but it wasn't likely they were going to catch up on that front anyways.

Then the first shocker.

"R-Red Star?! WHAT?!"  
There was a reward for the team that had stepped on the most amount of red stars. Yomi and Kagura, yet again.

"Oh come _on_!" Yukari slapped her forehead. "We can still get second, Tomo! They just have to announce the coin star!"

Then the second shocker.

"SHOPPING STAR?! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!"  
Osaka loved playing around with the board orbs, so she and Chiyo were rewarded the bonus star, putting them in second instead.

"Well, we tried, Kaorin…." Sakaki was fine with 3rd. And that meant so was Kaorin.

"Great game!" Kagura got up and stretched. "See you all in class tomorrow?"

"Yep!"

"Bye, Miss Kagura! Thanks for the fun time, Miss Sakaki!"

The tall girl bowed and politely watched as the others got their stuff and left, but Tomo and Yukari sat frozen, looking at the screen.

"Tomo…."  
"Yeah, Yukari?"  
"You didn't get ANY of my homework done, did you?"  
"Nope!"

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't think I forgot about the two suggestions my way. I'm going to use Metal Gear Solid after next chapter.
> 
> Next game: Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade [Chiyo + Masaaki Oyama]


	20. Fire Emblem: the Blazing Blade

Chiyo got to school early the next day, so she decided to sit in the classroom and check her homework for any errors.

"Mmm….ah! I translated this sentence wrong…."

"President?" it was the bespectacled Masaaki Oyama, who used to have the Class President title the year Chiyo entered Yukari's class. "You're here early."

"So are you, Mr. Oyama! Studying?"

"Mm-hmm." He pushed up his glasses. "I must do better on Sensei's next test."

"Good luck then!"

The two read/wrote in silence for a few more minutes, before Oyama was at Chiyo's desk, holding his broken pencil out.

"Huh?"  
"Do you have another…?"

"Certainly! Here you go!"

Five more minutes passed before Oyama was at her desk again, the frames of his glasses white.

"U-Um….do you need another pencil?"

"President Mihama, I've heard around the class you partake in video games. May I show you one? Before our teacher shows up…."

"Oh! Well sure, Mr. Oyama. What did you have in mind?"

He took out a Game Boy Advance and set it on her desk. He flicked the power switch, and soon the game itself opened up to a dream-like exposition about an event called "The Scouring." Chiyo read with fascination.

Finally the title.

**Fire Emblem**

"Fire….Emblem?"

"Yes, it's a turn-based strategy game, and well….given your high grades I assumed it'd be to your liking. I'm a big fan of this series, but no one's interested when I talk about it…"

"Well I'd be happy to play!" Chiyo smiled at her classmate.

* * *

But to Chiyo's surprise, she wasn't starting at the beginning of the game. Chapter 11 began with a story of a man named Hector, a burly blue-haired lord.

"Ah, this was the game they made for beginners in the West…the first 10 chapters are there but they can skipped. Figured it might bore you."

"Oh…." She sounded disappointed, but Oyama moved her along to the first map of the route, where Hector and his loyal spy, Matthew, had to escape. Chiyo followed his instructions to get used to the UI.

"There's a triangle, like Janken. Swords beats axes, axes beat lances, and lances beat swords. The first enemy is a good example."

Chiyo moved Hector into a soldier's range, where a green arrow pointing up was on the battle forecast. His hit chance was much higher, and he did double damage.  
"Wow….I get it! But how does someone attack twice? How many more points of speed?"

"Ah, 4. You see Chiyo, each unit has a different set of growths, a percentage chance the stat will increase."

"Ohhh…."

And it seemed Matthew's Iron Sword did single digit damage, with a orange arrow pointing down. Even though he would double the soldier, his HP and defense was much smaller compared to Hector's.

"Oh this is a bad idea! Maybe we can break down this wall? I see a chest…"

Oyama nodded. "Matthew is a thief, and they're very useful in getting treasure."

When the enemy turn came, Hector finished off the soldier on retaliation, but an archer took a potshot at Matthew.

"Ah!"  
"Yes, archers are potentially dangerous. But they don't have one range, so the key is to attack in melee!"

Now Chiyo had an idea. She used Matthew to break the wall down, while Hector had just enough movement to rush in and engage the archer….he ended up doing more damage and defeated the archer!

"H-Huh? Was my math off?"

"Not at all. Hector had a 3% chance to crit, where a unit does three times the damage. You're far more likely to see them on your units then the enemy's but they're out there."

"Oooh….does luck determine it?"

"Actually, skill does. Luck is what protects you from one."

Chiyo nodded. She seemed to have a good understanding on the mechanics, so she continued - Hector did most of the heavy lifting while Matthew obtained a Red Gem from the chest. The boss blocked the escape route, but Hector's axe did effective damage.

"The Wolf Beil does 2x damage to knights and cavaliers", Oyama had said. Finally, the chapter was complete.

"D-Do we have time for another chapter?" Chiyo whispered. "This is fun!"

Next chapter added a plethora of units under Chiyo's control, but she noticed the map was larger, had terrain, and even some pegasus knights.

"Oh d-dear…..we have to rout them….?"

"It means to….defeat," Oyama (half-)lied. "But it's okay, you have all those units on the bottom. Including-"

"Roy!" Chiyo noticed. "He was from Super Smash Bros!"

"…..Chiyo, that's a common Westerner mistake. That's Eliwood, his father. See?"  
The pigtailed girl turned redder than the color of the enemy units! She moved the cursor over to Marcus, who had higher stats than the rest of the team.  
"Wow he's strong!"

Oyama's glasses shined. "Marcus is really good! He's capable of routing every enemy on this map with 0 problems! But, you mustn't overuse him."

"W-Why not? Do his stats deplete?"

"Haha no, but the other units need experience to get closer to his level. Usually these games come with a prepromote like him to act as your crutch."

On Hector's side was an armored knight with only 4 movement but higher defense, and a young girl that could Heal. Chiyo smiled; she liked Serra's hair.

"Are you ready?"

"Yes!"

Hector and Oswin handled the enemies on the north side, but the pegasus knights had enough move to get closer to the weak Serra and Matthew. So they had to be routed first.

"Oh look, this girl has a bow! She can shoot them down, right?" Chiyo highlighted Rebecca, a plucky young archer.

"I'm impressed, President, that's correct! Better to use those axe-fighters to draw them in."

As for Eliwood himself, he was weaker than Hector, but his weapon also had crit and effective damage. He finished off one of the brigands.

"Ah, Chiyo, Miss Yukari will be here in ten minutes. Perhaps we can suspend and try again at lunch?"

"But Mr. Oyama! I think I've got it figured out! I must use Marcus to handle the enemies I can't defeat immediately. Look, the boss is starting to move…"

And thus began one of the luckiest but fastest chain of moves Masaaki Oyama had ever seen. Hector and Rebecca kept getting low percentage crits, Dorcas dodged every hit his way, and Marcus and Lowen were able to ferry Eliwood closer to the line of brigands on the right side.

"He has a sword, we need the better hit rate!"

"C-Chiyo, you figured out how to rescue chain? That's a skilled maneuver…."

Then Chiyo discovered the drawback of Marcus - he was _too_ good. Indeed, not only did he double EVERY enemy, no enemy was capable of surviving a round.

"Oh no….I wanted Eliwood to get all of these final hits! But if we're playing for time…" Chiyo moved Marcus in the path of the boss.

Meanwhile, Matthew checked out the armory. Hector had no gold, but selling the Red Germ netted a cool 2500 gold.

"Ah, shops are important. Not every map has them, so you'll need to stock up when necessary. Might I recommend another axe for Hector and another sword for Eliwood?"  
"That sounds perfect!" So she bought them.

* * *

Finally, Marcus routed the final enemy - Zagan, the boss - in style….running in place and smashing his sword into his body a la the paladin crit.

"We did it!" Chiyo had just enough time to save the game and quickly shut it off, just as her classmates and Yukari filed in.

"Would you like to borrow it? You could start with chapter 1 and play at your own speed," Oyama whispered.

"Thank you, that sounds great!" Chiyo giggled. "These really involve some skillful thinking…"

"HEY Chiyo-chan!" Tomo waltzed over to her desk. "Whatcha playing?"  
"A-Ah Takino, we were-"  
"Fire Emblem? Isn't that the game with the tanks?"  
"No."  
"Ah, the game with the armies?"  
"You're still thinking of the same game."  
"The game with Marth?"

"…."

"Oh no, Tomo, Marth is a Super Smash Bros. character."

Oyama turned white. "C-Chiyo, he's from the same series…..just not this game."

"Does this game have Roy in it?" Tomo obliviously asked.

"Y-Yes but he's not…I mean….he's IN the game but….ah, I think that's maybe a spoiler….then again, his game came first….?"

Poor Masaaki Oyama was at a loss, so he sat back down at his desk. Both girls just shrugged.

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The first FE chapter was gonna be either this or Awakening, so...happy new year by the way.
> 
> Next Game: Metal Gear Solid [Chiyo, Tomo, & Yomi]


	21. Metal Gear Solid

The blustery winds of December barreled through the town, and poor Chiyo nearly got knocked over! But she pressed on, scarf around her neck and schoolbag in one hand.

"Let's see….oh, this is her house."

* * *

**DING-DONG**

"I'LL GET IT!" Tomo shouted, racing to open the door. "Ah, Chiyo-chan! Come in, come in! Lemme take your coat…" She pulled it off the small girl.

"Ah, is everything alright? You told me to come by myself…."

Tomo dragged her into the kitchen, where her family was. All Takinos, all not nearly as energetic as Tomo, but they got pretty close. "This is Chiyo-chan, the GENIUS that made me get an A on that last test!"

Her family stared critically at her.  
"A-Ah! I mean, we were just doing homework…."

"Don't be so modest! You must be pretty darn smart, if Tomo can still get an A while playing video games all the time!" said her father. "From now on, you're gonna be her personal tutor!"

"W-What?! I mean…..Mr. Takino, Tomo can really put her mind to anything if she just applies herself!"

"She really IS a genius!" said Tomo's amazed mother.

"Uhhhhh…."

* * *

Yomi looked up from her book when the two entered Tomo's bedroom. "Hey Chiyo. I guess Tomo paraded you around her family?"

"It WORKED, Yomi! Now this sweet little gaming marathon can continue for the rest of the year!"

Chiyo opened her mouth, then closed it. Then: "I'm not some kind of monkey, you know…."

"Far from it, buddy! So! Wanna play a quick game? I got a REAL cool one in store today!" Tomo ran over to her closet and began to rummage through her clothes pile.

"That reminds me! I want to reorganize this rotation order now that Miss Yukari and Kaorin are joining us…."  
"It won't be long before Miss Kurosawa joins too," Yomi predicted.

Tomo pulled out her Playstation. "Bwaaa! Still got it! Anyways, just make them go after Osaka, Chiyo. First come, first serve!" Eagerly, she began to connect the wires to the TV.

"But that's just it, sometimes we have a smaller group play games….." Chiyo trailed off. She was handed a controller, as the PS logos passed the game booted up.

**Metal Gear Solid**

"No more kiddie stuff, Chiyo, it's time for a REAL experience!"

* * *

The opening cutscene featured a man in scuba gear arriving on an island, undetected by the guards with guns all over the compound - Shadow Moses. Once he emerged, the screen switched to a codec call.

**"This is Snake. Colonel, can you hear me?"**

"Goodness….are w-we playing some kind of war game?"

"Hehehehe….don't worry Chiyo, it's not some kind of Desert Storm stimulator, it's ALLL about sneaking around and taking out the bad guys indirectly!

The channel Snake and the Colonel were speaking on could only be heard by the former, on a device stimulating bones in his ear. Snake took the elevator as the rest of the opening credits played out. When he got above ground to the snowy exterior, Colonel Roy Campbell revealed some more info.

**"This is Mei Ling. She was assigned to us as our visual and data processing specialist."**

"Oh, the other woman on the call…."

Snake's mission was to stop the titular Metal Gear from attacking the U.S Government, along with saving some hostages on the island…

"Okay! Let's see…." Chiyo switched to the first-person camera. "There's guards all over! I guess I have to be careful….as long as we're not shooting people, right?"

Yomi covered Tomo's mouth before she could start talking about weapons. "That's the idea."

But Chiyo was still fiddling with the controls when she heard a very VERY distinct alarm sound and looked up just in time to see a "!" above the guard's head.  
Then he started to shoot.

"GUH?!" Snake tried to flee, but he was shot down.

**"Snake? What happened?! Snake?! SNAKE?! SNAKEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"**

The game over screen popped up. Chiyo was speechless.

"Pffffffft Chiyo! You got killed by the first guard of the game, that's like getting hit by the first goomba!" Tomo laughed. "C'mon, you can do it!"

"Tomo, do you PROMISE we don't have to shoot people to win?" asked the anxious player. She reloaded the file. "That gave me a heart attack!"

"Promise, promise."

XXXXX

Snake got far enough to crawl through the vents, and Chiyo reached a bathroom where one of the hostages was.

**"You're the DARPA Chief, Donald Anderson, right?"**

Chiyo was heavily engrossed in their conversation about nukes and terrorists, and it made her poor little head spin. Tomo and Yomi, however, were no strangers to the game's themes.

"Was it really a good idea to show Chiyo the espionage/global security game?"

"Aw come on, Yomi, it's not like we're gunning people down! Besides, wouldn't this game make an AWESOME movie! Kojima should play Snake!"

"Kojima has kinda moved on from the series, hasn't he?"

The chief gave two pieces of critical information - a clairvoyant assassin named Psycho Mantis was running around, and Snake needed three card keys to progress.

"Oh cool, it's Meryl!"  
"Spoilers, Tomo!"

Chiyo rubbed her weary head. "Okay, I understand. We just have to….wait! S-Something's happening to the poor chief!"  
Donald suddenly collapsed due to a heart attack, and the Colonel seemed to know more than Snake could figure out.

But then,

**"You've got one of the card keys, right? Use it to open the door!"**

-three armed guards came to attack Snake and this "Meryl", and they were shot down. Chiyo was appalled, doubly so when Snake yelled at his new partner to shoot, not talk as more filed in.

"T-Tomo! You promised!"

"It's not my fault, Chiyo, the game is scripted at this part! Snake doesn't NEED guns to win the game, but y'know, cutscenes and all that!"

She was handed the controller back with a firm pout after the shootout. "I refuse to shoot more people, even if it's just a video game!"

"Chiyo! Come on, the game's getting interesting now!"

Chiyo looked to Yomi.

"Well….you're right, this is a game for a higher age group, and you are technically only 12….it's not the bloodiest game I've seen….Tomo, maybe she shouldn't play."

"Bah! How is it different from stomping on Koopas in Mario? Everyone always *dies* in a video game, Chiyo, but it's HOW they die that matters! If it's dust or they just vanish, the developers don't want you to worry about it. But if you see blood, then maybe you're supposed to think a little, right?"

"Then….I still shouldn't play! Hmph!"

Tomo got to her knees. "Pleeeeeeeease? I'll do whatever you want! Honest!"

"…honest?"

"Yep!"

Chiyo took the controller back. "I want to see A's on every test Miss Yukari gives us! If not, then….then….I won't play your games!"

"WHAT?!"

Yomi snickered. "Sounds like fun."

"Er….fine! But you'd better keep playing!"

* * *

Eventually Snake clashed with a man named Revolver Ocelot. True to the name, his weaponry was firearms, and soon the two were locked in another gun battle, much to Chiyo's chagrin.

"Just relax, Chiyo, this fight's kinda tricky."

Ocelot kept moving around the square grid arena, where the bullets from both could ritochet off the walls.

**"Don't you want to settle this?"**

"Not with guns!" Chiyo whimpered. "C-Can't we play Janken instead?" Ocelot had a larger health bar, which meant he had to take more punishment.

"You're almost there!" Yomi encouraged. But she saw how Chiyo's face got all weary whenever she had to press the shoot button on the side. At the end, Ocelot escaped, but before Snake could talk to the hostage (Baker)-

"W-What is _that_?!"

Her shaking hand pointed to a mysterious figure in a blue exoskeleton and single eye mask. He also had a katana, which never failed to impress Tomo.

**"Like you…I have no name…."**

Said figure suddenly spazzed out, flipped around, and disappeared, before Snake could take a clear shot.

**"Who the hell….?"**

"Yes, who the… _heck_ is right! Tomo, why do all of these strange and scary people come to this island?" Chiyo gulped. "We're probably going to see him again…."

Baker spoke with Snake; the chilling images of real-life rockets and dealings playing during his explanation haunted Chiyo's brain, but she paid attention. The strange blue man was from FOXHOUND.

"You….think Chiyo's gonna be okay?"

"Well, if she survived Five Nights at Freddy's…."

Snake got a drive loaded with information, but before he could learn more about the Metal Gear, the hostage suffered another…..heart attack.

"N-No!"

Yomi shook her head. "That'll do it."

"This can't be a coincidence!" Chiyo predicted. "There's so much more to discover about this whole mess…terrorists, the government…I won't let the bad guys win!" She continued on. Tomo smiled.

* * *

Eventually the guard from before introduced herself as Meryl, the Colonel's niece, via codec. According to her, FOXHOUND's presence on the island was to try to keep the projects on Shadow Moses a secret.

Chiyo had gotten better at the sneak mechanic overall - knowing when to duck out of line from a camera's view was a key component.

"Nice, Chiyo! Although I'll miss that alarm sound…"

"Hehehe….well, anything to avoid more shootouts…"

Tomo scratched the back of her neck. "Sorry. I guess I should've warned you."

"It's okay. Every video game is different, right? How fun can they truly be if they don't challenge some aspect of yourself? Yomi, you mentioned a Kojima, he made this game?"

"Yeah. He's known for cinematics and real pressing themes in his games. Other developers just want to make a fun game, here we're getting stuff about wars and weapons."

Chiyo nodded. "It's something to really think about."

Then the codec rang.

"Oh! It's Miss Meryl!"

**"You can't probably see them with your naked eyes, but there are infrared beams coming out of the wall."**

**"** How do I….?"

Tomo nudged her. "Why don't you light up, huh?"

Confused, Chiyo panned through the inventory and searched for the right option. Tomo kept loudly coughing until she reached the "Cig" option.

"You can't be serious!"

When Snake "lit up", the beams became visible, allowing Chiyo to pass through with moderate ease. That didn't stop her shaking hands.

"This game…encourages _smoking_ …?"

"What? No way, but smoking looks cool! Snake's a big action star, and all the action stars do it! Arnold, Sylvester,-"

"I'm surprised you know who those are," Yomi remarked.

Chiyo snuck around some more and ended up outside again, where eventually, the most shocking sight that she had ever seen came in Snake's path - a tattooed man emerging from a tank.

**"This is Raven's territory! Snakes don't belong in Alaska!"**

He (Vulcan Raven) fired at Snake, who barely dodged the shot. The boss battle began.

"What?! I have to fight a TANK?!"

Even worse was the fact that Snake had to fight Raven _on foot_ , with no shortage of weapons, grenades included. She yelped as the turret swung around to fire again.

"Run!" Tomo yelled. "And throw a grenade right back at him!"

"This is a TANK!" Chiyo squealed. "A war machine used to burrow down armies, and he's using it on just one soldier!"

"SO YOU HAVE TO BE A TANK RIGHT _BACK!_ "

"…..what does that mean?"  
"JUST GO WITH MY METAPHORS, YOMI!"

Unfortunately Snake died, promoting the Colonel's frantic cry again. But Chiyo (still trying to process this whole thing) went at it again, and eventually, she won. She definitely was screaming with every other shot, though.

"You did it!"

Snake picked up the next card key, and hurried along. But Vulture was still there, and his words with his unseen associate taunted the player…

**"We'll play with him a little longer…."**

* * *

"Hey Tomo!" Tomo's father peeked his head through the door. "It's dinnertime, so pause the game!"

"Right on, Dad! Can Yomi and Chiyo stay for dinner?"

"Why not? Koyomi's pretty much family, and this little genius is welcome to come to my house anytime!" He exited to the hall.

"C'mon girls, Mom makes the best soba…"

Chiyo saved her game, and set down the controller. "…"

"Um….you okay? You really got far for a newbie!"

"…."

Yomi raised an eyebrow. "Still upset over the gunfire?"

"…a TANK! W-What was Mister Kojima thinking?!"

"Hehehe, that's not the weirdest Metal Gear has to offer…."

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some games I can't cover ALL the main points in a single chapter, but that's the fun of Metal Gear. It has some serious themes, then you also have these batshit insane moments.
> 
> Next Game: The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past [Chiyo, Yomi, Osaka, Sakaki, Chihiro]


	22. Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past

Chiyo had talked it over with the others, and the plan was to finish the current game cycle as it currently was, then when it was _her_ turn….

Today was Yomi's turn.

"Ah, is that the doorbell? Guess that's her."

However, it was not Kaorin at said door.

"….Chihiro?"

"Hello!" she bowed. "Hate to drop in like this, but Kaorin got grounded by her dad…..and she wanted me to take her spot."

"I guess that's fine. Do you play video games often?"

"Sure I do! Gosh, the class made it seem like this was some kind of exclusive club. Miss Yukari being a part of it kinda sealed the deal, y'know?"

"….."

The others greeted Chihiro when she came in.

"Oh no, that's awful." Chiyo frowned. "I hope it wasn't because of us? What did Kaorin get in trouble for?"

"Aw, she got a C on Kimura's last test. Said she couldn't concentrate."

Sakaki and Yomi looked at each other, not having to guess why.

"Sweet! You can sit right next to me, Chihiro, hehehe…" Osaka patted the cushion to her right. "Tomo's too busy today and so's Kagura, so I need a commentary buddy!"

"Actually, I'll sit right here." Chihiro plopped next to Sakaki. In her back pocket was a tape recorder - Kaorin had insisted she get _everything_ so she could relive the lost experience. Meanwhile, Yomi had finished setting up a Super Famicom.

"Right, so today's game is Zelda. You heard about it, Chiyo?"

"Sure! You go on a quest to save the princess, just like Mario! Only….you don't do it in the same way, right?"

Yomi nodded. When she turned on the console, and the game loaded up, the title screen was three golden triangles folding together, and a sword stabbed through them, all to the accompaniment of a grand music. "This is adventure, not platforming. Want to go first?"

"Okay!"

"I love Zelda!" Chihiro gushed. "But I'm so bad at them…I can't finish any of them!" She blinked at Osaka fiddling with a video camera. "What's that, Osaka?"

"Tomo wanted me to get the good stuff for her account."

_Why am I using a tape recorder then?!_

* * *

The game began with a text scroll of Hyrule's history, of the Triforce and the Seven Wiseman that had sealed the monster Ganon away. Chiyo and Osaka were enraptured, but Sakaki spotted the annoyances in Yomi's eyes.

"You….okay?"

"Sorry, it's just the Zelda lore is way too complicated these days. I liked it more when it was just separate adventures."

"Sssh! This is the best part!"  
"Osaka, it's not voiced."

But in the present day, a wizard had attacked Hyrule Castle- he was targeting the descendants of the wisemen, and Princess Zelda was in the crosshairs too. Link's uncle had gone off to help, leaving the lad alone…Yomi had named him "Link" for convenience.

"Here goes! Let's help our uncle out!" Chiyo found a lantern in the house, and she was off. The style of the game was a 2D top-down view, the convention for early and handheld titles. "Oh no, it's raining…never a good sign."

The guards at the castle pushed Link away, but a secret entrance to the castle wasn't too far away, under some bushes.

"Always dig up the bushes, Chiyo! Zelda loves using that old trick!"

XXXX

"Uncle!"  
Link's uncle was slumped by the wall. In his dying breath he handed over the sword to him.

"No….uncle….we could've had some good times together…" Osaka sighed. "Guess you gotta avenge him, Chiyo-chan."

"Me?!" Chiyo tested the button for a sword swing. "Here goes…." Some nasty soldiers with nasty swords were coming. "S-Stay back, please!" She was mystified by them turning into hearts after.

"That's your health." Yomi pointed to the three hearts at the top left. "If you can find any heart pieces out there, you can boost your life."

"Understood!"

* * *

"Hey! There's Zelda!"

Link had reached a cell with said princess, and at her suggestion, the two would take a different route to escape the castle's attack.

"Really makes you wonder….why do they call it Legend of Zelda, if Link's the hero?" Osaka watched the purple-haired boy lead on. "Does she do somethin'?"

"Most of the time, Zelda gets kidnapped….but maybe….um….?"

"Yes Yomi?" Chiyo asked.

"I don't know, actually. Chihiro, what about you?"

"Hehehehe….beats me….?" she sweatdropped. "What do you think, Sakaki?" Chihiro scooted closer to her, hopefully to pick up her voice for Kaorin.

Unfortunately, Sakaki gave a wordless shrug.

XXXX

"This is getting…um…a little…" Link and Zelda's escape was longer than Chiyo had expected, but she couldn't tell Yomi, she wanted to soldier on! "Um….unless, someone else wants to play?"

"You're close, Chiyo-chan, just find the Sanctuary."

A few guards, pots, and dark halls later, she did. Link had even picked up a nifty boomerang to use in his "A" slot, which was always an item.

"Phew…I thought there would be some bad guy!" Osaka smiled at the safe Zelda….for now. "Says here we gotta find some elder?"

"Of course, if Zelda gets captured, that'll be the end of Hyrule!" Chiyo realized. "Off we go….into the kingdom itself? With a bunch of monsters, by ourselves?" She stepped outside, but quickly held out the controller. "S-Someone, please, take your turn."

"Hmmmm…..how about Sakaki?"

XXXXX

Link had to find the elder, a descendant of the wisemen. So, Sakaki kept a calm lookout as she traversed the map. Like Chihiro, she had dabbled with the series but could never finish one of the titles.

"…..Chihiro."

"Yes?"

"….why do you have a tape recorder sticking out of your pocket? It's okay, Tomo can just watch the video another day."

"Uhh….." _Y'know…..why can't I spend time with them, by myself? Sorry Kaori._ So she put it in her pack, and turned her attention back to the screen. "You're right! Say, I think I remember a part of this game….the elder's house is this way!"

Yomi came back with tea for all, raising an eyebrow. Link was going in the opposite direction. And Sakaki wasn't one to fight soldiers either, she usually would run away.

"Say Sakaki? Can you do some kind of cool trick? Gotta spice up the footage!" Osaka was fiddling with the camera.

"I….don't know…maybe this?" Sakaki threw a pot at a Keese. She frowned when the hit killed the poor thing.

"Osaka, put the camera down." Yomi snatched it away. "Gaming experiences shouldn't be artificial. Right Chiyo?"

"Owww! I burned my tongue! Owowow..."

* * *

Chihiro continued to give unknowingly bad directions, and Sakaki grew no closer. Yomi was getting a little impatient….did they even know the map existed?

"Why not try down th-"  
"I'm positive it's THIS way, Yomi!"

It wasn't, although Sakaki fell into a small cavern, where she found a neat heart piece in a chest at the bottom.

"Woooow! Lemme play, lemme play!"

The controller was passed to Osaka, whose eyes lit up with a clever idea. Which, to her friends, meant it was certainly an idea they wouldn't think of.

"All we gotta do is find every heart in the land! Then we'll max out our life points…."

"Awesome!" Chihiro was totally on board. Yomi was not.

"Osaka, you'd need all the items to find everything, plus this is only the first part of the game. You really can't…are you listening?"  
Osaka stared at the screen, face frozen in gleeful determination.

"Um, Yomi….it's like you said, experiences shouldn't be artificial. We can always finish the game another day, right?" Chiyo smiled. "And besides, the princess is safe!"

So she gave up, and watched Osaka hunt for and eventually find two more heart pieces….in the span of two and a half hours.

XXXXXX

"One more!" Chihiro searched high and low for that next filled heart, and at this point, she, Sakaki, and Chiyo were making notes about Hyrule's layout.

 _They….STILL haven't checked the map…._ Yomi sighed. _This is getting silly, but then again….I'd just be a hypocrite, right? The fun is always searching things yourself._

"Hey a house!"

By some kind of crazy luck, she found the elder, Sahasrahla, who told Link the one way to get the Master Sword was to obtain the three pendants. The first, of Courage, was in the Eastern Palace.

"Oh…that's right, we still need to save Hyrule!"

"OR….." Osaka was staring right at Chihiro, eyes aflame. "We can finish the heart. Cuz you never leave a heart empty."

"We have the bombs and arrows…" Chiyo pointed out. "W-We really didn't get too much done, did we?"

Chihiro stared at the screen, then her hands, then back at the girls. "I'm going to do it."

"The heart?"

"No, Sakaki…..I'm gonna beat the dungeon! This is for all the Zelda games I couldn't beat! Go time, let's go!"

Yomi smiled at the girl's words, but her glasses nearly shattered in reflex when Link paraded in the opposite direction, yet _again._

"For crying out-YOU HAVE A MAP BUTTON! IT'S EVEN MARKED!"

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After next chapter, Chiyo's game will shake things up a little more, like in the Wii Sports chapter. But if you guys want, throw out another suggestion for later use.
> 
> Next Game: Five Nights at Freddy's 2 [Chiyo, Tomo, Yomi, Sakaki, Osaka, Kagura, & Kaorin]


	23. Five Nights at Freddy's 2

It was a rainy day at school, and winter break was just around the corner. But Osaka had teased her game choice the entire day.

"Osaka, come on! We goin' to your house or what?"

"Hehehehe…." She walked past her friends, up the steps. "To the library, y'all."

"Why?" Yomi asked, closing her umbrella. "We're going to study instead?"

"NO!" Tomo banged her locker. "Today is a free day! The stars and planets have aligned that we don't have any homework - FOR ONCE - and I'm not gonna waste it at _school!"_

"School?!"

Kaorin was just about to leave for the day, and if she was at school…. "If we're here….I can join you all this time! Oh, isn't it wonderful, Miss Sakaki?!"

"I…..suppose so….?"

Osaka giggled. "We're gonna play in the library cuz my own computer is busted….hehehe…."

"…."

"…"

"Well get moving already! Think I hear Kimura…."

* * *

The other girls huddled around Osaka as she clicked around for her chosen game, but Chiyo was having second thoughts.

"Should we really be using a school computer for a game?"

"Aw, Chiyo, no one's here, and it's Friday. I doubt the principal will care."

"What's the game, Osaka?" Kagura asked. And then, they saw it….the sign of the horrible animatronics that traumatized them no too long ago.

"Five Nights at Freddy's 2?" Kaorin looked curious. "Hey, what's that?"

"NO!" the five girls screamed.

"Hey, you all promised you'd play." Osaka turned in her chair. "Don't you want to beat Freddy, after the spook he gave y'all last time?"

 **"NO!"** Yomi and Tomo repeated.

"Osaka, we are NOT playing this game again! I can't imagine how they've made this game scarier….uhhh, because Chiyo doesn't like it!" Kagura pointed to the cowering genius.

"Please….?"

Sakaki gulped. "Well…..it's only fair. Kaorin, are you sure you want to stay? This…isn't for the faint of heart."

 _M-Miss Sakaki cares about my well-being….maybe I should take her advice and run for it…..no! I can show her how brave I really am!_ "I'll stay! In fact…I'll play first!"

"DON'T DO IT!" a franic Chiyo screamed, covering her pigtails. "Freddy will get you!"

But Osaka got up and let Kaorin sit down.

* * *

The opening cutscene was largely identical to the first….the player was a security guard newly hired to guard Freddy's Pizzeria, and the newspaper clipping spoke of a "grand reopening".

"WHAT!" Tomo nearly slammed the keyboard. "They're reopening this place?! No lawsuits or anything like that?!"

"100 dollars a week….that's barely over 10,000 yen! That's not enough to deal with these freaks!" said Kagura.

Kaorin laughed nervously. "T-They do look a little scary…"

Once again a voice on the phone talked about the job, and Kaorin got access to the controls. This time, however, there was no office guarded by two doors….no, the guard saw into the darkness. Instead, he had to check the vents.

"WAUGH! Do they want us to die?!" Chiyo shrieked. Kaorin was having second thoughts, but she listened carefully, and cycled through the rooms. In addition to the space having more of them, the new joint looked slightly different overall.

Another mechanic was the suit.

"Seriously?" Yomi was shocked. "We have to cosplay as one of these freaks just to live?"

"They're dumber than they look, huh Yomi?"

And then, Kaorin saw a new friend - Balloon Boy, a humanoid animatronic that stared back with a big smile on his face. "W-What is _that?_!"

"They're multiplying….." Sakaki turned white. "K-Kaorin, the vents!"

The girls all screamed when they saw a new Bonnie already creeping in the right side, but then, the sound of a music box was ticking away….

"S-Switch to the other room!" Chiyo pointed to the screen. "Remember, you have to wind that up every few seconds!"

"H-How many rules does this game even have?!" Kaorin's heart was pounding. She kept the cursor and feed on the box's room, but that proved fatal.  
 **"EERAH!"**  
New Chica jumped out of the screen and killed the player.

"what….what….." Poor Kaorin's brain was frozen. "….what was that….?"

Sakaki patted her shoulder. "A brave effort for a beginner. But you can't keep your feed in one spot. This game throws more surprises at you than the first one. Let us spare you the stress, Kaorin."

"okay….." Kaorin would've gushed at the touch if her eyes were spazzing out.

* * *

Tomo took the challenge for night 1, with the girls playing careful watch for her. (Chiyo was fanning the comatose Kaorin). "Why can't we just hide in the suit the whole time?"

"Same reason why we couldn't camp in the office last game. Box!" Yomi shouted.

"Got it!" Tomo winded it back up and switched back to the Balloon Boy. "This guy is so creepy…."

"Flashlight!" Sakaki shouted.

The guard also had to constantly shine a light towards the hallway to deter the approaching Foxy. All in all, the stakes had been raised.

"Look! We made it to night 2!" Osaka said. Tomo passed the mouse to her. "Me?"

"You're the one that wanted to deal with Freddy again!"

XXXXX

Osaka had gotten better as well, but hearing directions from three different people - Yomi, Kagura, and Tomo - was throwing her off. "Sssh! Wait your turn. Chiyo-chan, what's next?"

"MUSIC BOX!"

"Huh?" But it was too late, the circle meter had depleted. All the girls tensed up, believing Golden Freddy would come back to haunt their eyes again. However….

**"SKREEEEEEEEE!"**

-it was a marionette with a white mask. Chiyo joined Kaorin in the comatose corner. But Osaka only looked upset. "Aw man, when did Freddy get all of these new pals?"

"Who cares, Osaka! I'm NOT letting them win this time!" Kagura declared. She started the game up and snatched the mouse away. Rather than let fear control her, this time anger was fueling her run. She checked rooms, did the flashlight, kept control on the music box….and eventually, night 2 was won.

**"YAY!"**

"Whoa….Kagura….that was…."

But the swimmer only had bravado for only so long. "S-Sakaki, it's your turn!"

* * *

Sakaki hated every part of the game. How it scared her friends and herself, how it contorted cute animals into something horrible….but like Kagura, she couldn't let Freddy win.

"Augh! Balloon Boy's giggle is driving me nuts!" Tomo shouted. "Wait, there's a white thing attacking us now?!"

"Looks like a pal for Foxy," Osaka said. "That's weird…."

"There's two sets of monsters. One set are the deformed ones from the last game, the other are the new ones in this place…so not worth 10000 yen a night."

"How much would be worth it, Yomi?"

"Maybe….250,000….wait, what I am saying?! Nothing is worth _death_ , Osaka!"

Sakaki's breath hitched when she put on the suit to hide, only to hear heavy breathing from New Freddy. "He can smell my fear…."

"WHAT?!"

"They literally can't, Tomo, they're machines."

"Yomi, you underestimate bears…"

But the night ticked on. Instead of monitoring the power supply of doors, the player always had to keep an eye on the flashlight's battery, upon of everything else. Slowly but surely….Sakaki approached the end…..only one in-game hour left…

"The box!"

"I got it."

"The suit!"

"Yes, I know."

**"YAY!"**

"YAAAAAAAY!" Tomo and Osaka jumped up with joy, as did Kagura. "We're gonna win this time, Miss Sakaki! We're on night 4!"

"Is Kaorin still out of it?" Kagura asked. "Poor thing, only one night did her in…"

"NO!"

To everyone's surprise, Kaorin had raced back to the computer, sweating but looking pretty darn intense. She wasn't going to be dismissed so easily, not when she had the chance to be with her friends! _This won't be like Kimura and Yukari!_

"I'm playing now. Miss Sakaki, is that okay?"

"S-Sure…."

Eyes aflame with passion, Kaorin sat down and grabbed the mouse with the strength of a cement mixer. "Let's do this."

* * *

Chiyo eventually came to. "Oooh….oh! Miss Kurosawa, is that you?"

Nyamo was looking at the six girls huddled around the computer. "Any particular reason why the lights are off, and they're going nuts? C'mon, the librarian's going home, she asked me to get you guys."

"We're playing…..a scary game…."

"Yukari's idea, huh?"

"No! It was Osaka's. Ma'am, I'm so sorry…."

Nyamo patted her head. "Don't be, I was young too. I actually had a lot of fun playing Paper Mario with you, maybe one day we can finish the file."

"You want to play too, right? That makes you, Miss Yukari, Kaorin, Chihiro…please, come to my house during the break, next Tuesday. I've got something planned."

"Uh….if you say so…"

"YES!" Kaorin laughed loudly. "Night 5, here we come!"

"Geez, what are they even playing?"

"You don't want to know!" Chiyo ushered her teacher out. "No mortal eyes should be suffering through this game, ma'am. We'll vanquish the demon. See you in a few."

"But I-"  
Chiyo closed the door in her face.

* * *

Now Kaorin had made it to the final night, and she was close to passing out from exhaustion. But she wanted to make a gaming memory she could always cherish.  
Unsurprisingly, Freddy's gang popped up a lot more frequently. The flashlight, the music box, the suit….all of these had to be constantly rotated to win.

"Kaorin, the vent!"

"Over there, it's Chica!"

"Box, box, box!"

"STOP!" she screamed to her friends. "I can do this! Just…just be quiet!" Her eyes were almost glued to the monitor. "2 AM…."

The only sound in the library was her frantic clicks. Even Tomo didn't make a sound.

_I can do this! I CAN DO THIS!_

And then….

**"YAY!"**

"Kaorin, you did it!" Sakaki hugged her. "I knew you had it in you! You're the best!"

_"Miss Sakaki…."_

_"Kaorin….I love you…"_

XXXXX

"I love you too…"

"What is she talking about?"

Kaorin was on the floor, muttering in her sleep, while the victory screen proudly displayed on the screen. The girls were packing up their stuff to go home.

"Kaorin, you did so well!" Chiyo smiled. "Now, maybe we should help her get more…all that concentration really took a lot of her."

"Hey!" Osaka was closing the tabs when she spotted something. "What do you know, there's another game!"

Chiyo turned the monitor off, Tomo unplugged the power, Yomi pushed Osaka in her chair away from the chair, and Sakaki and Kagura picked up Kaorin to leave.

"Don't you girls want to pl-"  
 **"NO!"**

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not gonna do the others, sorry!
> 
> Next Game - Nintendo Land (Chiyo, Tomo, Osaka, Yomi, Kagura, Sakaki, Kaorin, Chihiro, Yukari, Nyamo)


	24. Nintendo Land

The day was bright, not a cloud in the sky. This did well to offset the chilly temperature in town, with people crossing the streets in their winter jackets. Yes, it seemed like a usual Saturday.

**WHRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR**

-save for the Yukarimobile accelerating down the road and breaking separate speed laws in the process.

"YUKARI! WHY DIDN'T YOU LET ME DRIVE?!" yelled Nyamo in the passenger seat, with Osaka, Sakaki, Kagura, Yomi, Kaorin, and Chihiro all screaming for their lives behind them. "Come to think of it, you didn't need to crush our students either!"

"What's that, Nyamo? Tomo is texting me something."

"OH YOU LITTLE BI-"

XXXXXXX

Tomo had been camped outside Chiyo's estate since 6 AM, unable to hide her excitement over her friend's invitation. Although, Chiyo had said 1 PM.

"Hey! Mr. Tadakichi, can you let me in yet?"

Her dog was on the other side of the fence. He just barked.

**WHRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR**

"Oh they're here!" Tomo watched the Yukarimobile skid to a stop, to which all the passengers got out with queasy faces and pale skin. Save for Yukari, who just sipped her soda.

"1 pm, on the dot! Hey, Chiyo, we're all here!"

* * *

"Ah! Please come in!" Chiyo said at the door. "You can take your shoes off there, and make yourselves at home! Mother and Father know you're all here."

"Uhhh…..they were okay with this whole….situation?" asked Nyamo, while Mr. Tadakichi ran inside to get at his food bowl. "What did you tell them?"

"Oh Miss Kurosawa, they know I play video games with the girls, they're fine with it! Please go to the room on your left, and I'll get the snacks."

Like last time, Chiyo already had a blackboard set up. Nobody had any idea of what game she had in mind, until she came in, set the snacks down, and pulled a box out of the closet. It was a black console. The successor to the Wii.

"Ta-da! My parents got it for me! Look at it! It's got a Gamepad and asymmetrical gameplay! The game it came with is perfect for parties like this!" In her hand was a copy of **Nintendo Land**. A being with a monitor for a face adorned the boxart.

"Oh wow!"

"Cool!"

"Our little group got bigger since last time, but people are still being left out. So! To decide the order of who picks what, we'll play this time! But from now on, we'll play here, at my house. Is that okay with everyone?"

Kaorin, who practically sunk into the beanbag chair, moaned happily. "Anything you say….."

"Sounds like a good idea, huh Tomo?" Yomi asked, setting her bag down. But the wildcat had a very depressed look on her face. "What's wrong?" Yukari had the same one.

"Tomo…."

"Yeah, I know. But we can't tell her that!"

"Tell her what?"

Tomo and Yukari winced at the sight of the console (Kagura and Sakaki were helping Chiyo connect the wires). "That console is out of style! Nintendo's gonna launch the Switch soon!"

"Yeah, this thing barely sold a fraction of the Wii's sales!"

Yomi shrugged. "So what? Look at her. A few months ago she only had the Wii and barely knew anything about video games, now she's leading the picks. I say let her enjoy it."

"…..darn it! She's right, Yukari."

"Yeah…..but if she ever gets an Xbox, I'm failing her!"

* * *

So the group went through the task of making Miis for themselves (Osaka was only given two minutes max), and the game was loaded. 12 minigames were available, only 6 supported more than 1 player: The Legend of Zelda: Battle Quest, Metroid Blast, Pikmin Adventure, Mario Chase, Luigi's Ghost Mansion, and Animal Crossing: Sweet Day.

"How are we gonna decide the match-ups?" Chihiro asked. She sat in between Kaorin and Sakaki so the poor girl wouldn't have a heart attack.

Chiyo presented a wheel with everyone's name. She flicked the spinner. "The only rule will be nobody can have more than two consecutive rounds. There's 10 of us, and each game supports up to 5."

"Chiyo-chan, what about Chichi?"

"Huh? Who's that, Osaka?"

"Yer…..y'know, pa? Ya can't leave him out."

"M-My father is at work right now…."

"Ah smart, gonna earn the donuts."

Kagura eyed the stand. "Your parents even threw in 4 Wiimotes? Pretty generous of them."

"Oh yes!" Chiyo wrote down the first round on the blackboard. "We'll play 24 games, so each game four times! Shall we begin?"

* * *

**Round 1 - Mario Chase - Chiyo, Nyamo, Tomo, Sakaki, Kaorin**

One player was always holding the Gamepad, here it was Chiyo. She had a view of the map top-down while her mii tried to flee from the other four, who only could see split-screen.

"This way!" Tomo yelled. "We'll trap Chiyo in a box formation!"

"C-Can we even do that?" asked Kaorin, trying to dash as fast as she could. Yukari had to facepalm at the sight of Nyamo running into the wall constantly. The clock ticked on, and on, and Chiyo kept her distance.

"No fair! Chiyo-chan played this game before!"

"Hey! Tomo, it's just a party game. I wanted to try with my parents!"

"Liar liar, plants for hire!"

"Ain't it pants on fire?"

"Shut up Osaka!"

**Winner - Chiyo**

* * *

**Round 2 - Luigi's Ghost Mansion - Osaka, Chihiro, Chiyo, Yomi, Yukari**

With the Gamepad, Osaka was the invisible ghost trying to make the other players faint. Chiyo and the others were moving around the maze with their flashlights to deplete the ghost's health.

"Oooooo…..I'm gonna haunt you….." Osaka crooned, going as far to put a sheet over head to get into character. Ironically this didn't seem to ruin her vision at all, but her health had dropped from 100 to 73. Yukari leaned over and-

"Yukari! Stop looking at the Gamepad, you cheater!"

"Ohh Miss Yukari!"

"FINE _!" How the hell is OSAKA beating me at this?! I'll show her!_ She turned the corner and walked past Yomi's character, and managed to catch Osaka. The ghost quickly fled, but Yukari kept on the hunt. Chihiro bumped into her. "Chihiro!"

"Hehehe, looks like there's some traffic, sensei."

"Stop being cute and help me get the ghost!"

"Ooooooooooo-" Osaka moved to and fro, really enjoying being a spooky specter. But she was so caught in the role, she didn't notice Yomi had picked up on her movement pattern. And in 45 seconds, the ghost was defeated. "…wait, I'm gone?"

**Winners - Chihiro, Chiyo, Yomi, Yukari**

* * *

**Round 3 - Animal Crossing: Sweet Day - Sakaki, Kagura, Kaorin, Tomo, Osaka**

"Ha! We're all against Miss Sakaki!"

The tall girl silently stared at the Gamepad. While the others were trying to get fruit from a tree, as cute animals at that, Sakaki controlled the guards trying to stop them. She sighed. She didn't want to stop the animals from getting their delicious fruit.

"Let's do it, Tomo!" Kagura shouted, getting her Wiimote ready. The match began, and true to Blockhead form, she and Tomo ran off in the same direction. Osaka headed right and started getting fruit.

"Campaign bribes, eh….?"

The animals only had to get a specific amount of fruit to win, but Sakaki would win if she caught one of them three times. And thanks to Kaorin's poor positioning, they lost a heart.

"KAORIN! WHAT THE HECK!"

Sakaki whispered a "sorry" and continued on. Unlike the other games, she didn't have a complete view of the map, but a portion of it. She managed to catch Kaorin again, even though the latter had tried a completely different fruit.

"OI! STOP IT!" Tomo shouted. "Focus!"

"I am! Hmph! We only have 11 fruit left!"

Then Osaka got caught.

**"WHAT?!"**

**Winner - Sakaki**

* * *

**Round 4 - Legend of Zelda: Battle Quest - Yukari, Nyamo, Kagura, Chihiro, Tomo**

While four players had to use their Wiimotes and Nunchuks to control the motions of a sword and shield, Yukari was at the rear, shooting arrows with the Gamepad. Everyone was dressed as Link, but in different color tunics.

"CHARGE!" Tomo shouted, being player 1. Yukari stewed at the idea of being an archer, but then something clicked in her brain.

"Huh….Chiyo?"

"Yes Miss Yukari? Would you like some more tea?"

"Uhhh….." _This game is cooperative, not competition! How are we supposed to beat each other?_ She mulled over the idea of quitting, but the others were really having fun cutting down monsters. Even Nyamo, as uncoordinated as she was, got the hang of things rather quickly. She did almost fling the remote into the TV, though.

"Something wrong?"

Yukari gestured for her to approach and whispered, "aren't we ALL gonna win this one?"

"Oh, you're smart, Miss Yukari! That's why everyone will get a point either way, with a SECOND point being awarded to whoever gets the most rupees!"

**"…"**

**"** Miss Yukari?"

"OUT OF THE WAY, PINHEADS, I'M TAKING HOME THE GOLD!"

**Winner: Yukari**

* * *

**Round 5 - Pikmin Adventure - Chihiro, Sakaki, Chiyo, Yomi, Nyamo**

This mode was also a team game, but fortunately, it DID have a versus mode to better decide a winner…Chihiro controlled herself dressed as Captain Olimar with tiny Pikmin, while the others were dressed _as_ Pikmin. The goal was to get the most candy.

"Uhhhh…..what is this game again?"

"Pikmin, from the Gamecube," Sakaki replied. "They work very hard to support the player."

Chihiro just blinked. "Okay….." while she could throw her Pikmin to attack and deplete the other side's candy count, she was still outnumbered 4 to 1. "Ah! Fight them, Pikmin!"

Both sides were also able to throw rocks for damage. Chihiro, having never played the series before, marveled at the differences - yellow had ears, red had a nose, and blue had a mouth. But she was so caught up on the little things that she realized too late she was low on candy.

"Ah! Only 30 seconds left?!"

"Nyamo stop running into walls!"

"I can't help it Yukari, these controllers are nothing like we had as a kid!"

**Winner: Sakaki, Chiyo, Yomi, Nyamo**

* * *

**Round 6 - Metroid Blast - Yomi, Kagura, Kaorin, Osaka, Tomo**

This mode also had a competitive mode despite the general feed of the game. Yomi controlled Samus Aran's ship with the Gamepad and shot at the players in Samus's Power Suit, while they shot back.

"ALL RIGHT! BLOCKHEADS UNITE!"

"YEAH!"

"YEAH!"

Kaorin had no proper response, only to look at Yomi….who just shrugged. Nevertheless the three tried to shoot the ship down together, but this only caused clustering and made it easy to shoot them down.

**Winner: Yomi**

* * *

The rounds cycled around in succession, and each person did have a chance at using the Gamepad. Chiyo was happy; everyone looked to be enjoying themselves. She continued to keep score, although the asymmetrical gameplay meant that points might be a little….variant.

Eventually, the last round was over, and all heads turned to the board. "Well?!"

"Let's see….Miss Kurosawa came in last, with only 3 points."

Nyamo looked disappointed. "But….that's all?"

"Then we have a tie between Osaka and Kaorin for 8th, both getting 5 points. Miss Sakaki got 6, and Chihiro got 8. Yomi got 9…..Kagura 11….and yes, a tie between Tomo and Miss Yukari for 2nd, with 12 points."

"But that means…."

Chiyo had gotten the most amount of points (13). She giggled.

"Chiyo-chan….beat ALL of us….?!" Tomo muttered. "So she picks the next game!"

"Wait! Let's not get ahead of ourselves." Chiyo quickly got out the journal that the girls had been filling up with game titles. "This all started to teach me, but now…..we can all teach each other! We don't have that much longer before we graduate, and….well, I just want this to be as fun as we can make it."

"Chiyo…."

"So the next person can choose! I insist!"

"….."

"Is something the matter?"

Yomi coughed. "Second place is between….." Yukari and Tomo both were glaring at each other, hands aiming for the Gamepad.

"GIVE ME THAT, YUKARI!"

"NEVER! I'LL FAIL YOU!"

"YOU DON'T HAVE THE GUTS!"

The others just watched in a combination of amusement and confusion as the two wrestled each for the controller. Chiyo, on the other hand, wrote down today's game in the journal, eager for the next experience.

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I dunno how many games we'll end on, but things will conclude once graduation happens :) Until then...
> 
> Next Game - Kingdom Hearts 2 Final Mix [Yukari & Nyamo]


	25. Kingdom Hearts 2: Final Mix

Later that evening…

"YO! Nyamo, let's go out to drink!" Yukari announced, barging into her friend's apartment with zero sense of tact or decorum. "Huh? Are you playing something?"

"Ah!"

She was, and from the signs of discarded water (and beer) bottles, she had been trying to succeed on her game's highest difficulty setting for a while now.

"Oooooooooh Kingdom Hearts 2? Man I don't get that game at all….but it's fun whacking people with the Keyblade! Lemme try!"

"No!" Nyamo pulled the controller out of reach. "I felt so embarrassed today. Am I really that bad at video games, Yukari?"

"Well which ones have you beaten?"

"There's-"

"- _without_ me or a guide helping you."

Stunned, Nyamo could only name the titles of her youth, namely Pac-Man, Galaga, Pokemon Blue, and so on. "God, why do I even care?! We're both college graduates and teachers!"

"Eh you're a gym teacher, that only counts for half."

Nyamo groaned. "For 4 hours I've been trying to beat Lv.1 Critical Mode…I haven't touched this game in three years! It's harder than I remember…."

"Critical Mode?"

The protagonist, a boy named Sora, would go around famous Disney worlds and fight the Heartless with Donald Duck and Goofy. KH2 was the title that introduced Critical Mode, the hardest mode. Enemies would do more damage, drops were rarer-

"- _And_ you've gimped him with Exp Zero?" Yukari was impressed. "What a mode! So what, everything kills you in one hit?"

"Two if you have Second Chance and Second Wind….you really need to know the game well, I guess."

"Where are you up to?"

"Yukari, please, you can't-"

But she was already fiddling around with the controls, testing out Sora's jump and combo potential. The D-Pad cycled through the command menu, and O carried them out. X was jump, square was guard, and triangle activated Reaction Commands, special contextual actions.

"Oh hey!" Yukari pointed to the bottom right of the screen. "The Beast from Beauty and the Beast! He was in the first game, right? Does he kiss Belle in this one?"

"Uh…I don't remember….?" Nyamo blinked. "I'm on the final boss of this world. Maybe you can give it a try….?"

Yukari controlled a Sora a little more, testing out some of his magic and limit attacks. She seemed to pick it up well. "Awesome! Let's kick Gaston's butt!"

* * *

Much to her surprise, however, the boss was a shadowy creature resembling….a heart in chains.

"Huh? I know they're called Heartless but this is stupid!"

"Yukari, focus!"

The monster faded into the dark floor and emerged in the windows, shooting off four pillars of dark energy. They slipped past Sora but struck Beast head on….showing Yukari the horrors of Lv 1. Critical Mode.

"Crap, he's wounded! Donald, heal him!"

Then Dark Thorn came out from the wall, allowing it to be locked on….but it jumped to the chandelier above. When It crashed down, it spun and shot off more energy.

**"Beast!"**

"Is this duck stupid?! Beast healed himself with a Potion!"

Nyamo laughed awkwardly. "Welcome to KH2…."

A few air combos depleted the chandelier's health, and the Reaction Command expelled it out, allowing it to be hit a few times.  
"Take that, and take that! Oh I know! I'll use Drive!"

But Goofy was not in the party, so Valor form could not be used. Sora took a nasty hit and was now on blinking alarm status.

"AUGH! Donald, heal me! I don't have a healing spell!"

"His MP is gone! You have to use items!"

Yukari fished out a potion, just in time to see her party members get into red health as well. But she had to save them for herself. "They can revive, right?"

"Yes….?"

So Sora charged ahead with more combos. But sadly, his health dropped to 0 against a counterattack.

"DAMN IT!"

Then the screen was white, with two options - **"I won't give up!"** & **"It's all over…."**. So she picked the first one, where a _dark-robed Mickey Mouse_ came out on Sora's behalf.

"Whoa?! Is this normal, Nyamo?"

"In some fights, yeah."  
Unlike Sora, Mickey was restricted to only three commands, excluding jump. One command would charge up energy for Sora's Drive, the other attack, and third shoot balls of light. Yukari opted for the first approach. But a few attacks from the boss ended Mickey's run, and Sora was restored, with half HP.

"Alright! Let's go!"

The Drive command was still grayed out.

"YOU STILL NEED TO SWITCH TO GOOFY!"

Sora ran away.

"HOW DO I DO….oh!" Pressing right on the D-Pad revealed an alternate command window, and quickly Donald was switched out for Goofy.

"What?! You need a healer!"

"I need offense!" Sora switched to Valor form, where he gained a second Keyblade, a red outfit, and the ability to high jump. His quicker attacker speed was just enough to beat Dark Thorn. "Yeah! I win!"

"N-Not quite…."

Although Dark Thorn was defeated, a Heartless named Shadow Seeker stepped in its place. It was bigger, stronger, and had much more HP. Yukari tried to attack but Sora's low health spelled disaster for the both of them.

"Cheap shot! Mickey, help me out again!"

Nyamo shook her head. "He doesn't show up that often. We have to try again."

"…you do." Yukari passed the controller. "You're the one that was giving me advice, well practice what you preach! I'll coach you!"

"…."

* * *

**"GAAAAAAH!"**

"Damn it, Nyamo, you NEED to get past this first phase! Again!"

XXXXXX

**"GAAAAAAH!"**

"That's a little better but STOP healing so much! If Donald can regain his MP, that takes the pressure off you!"

"You saw how dumb his AI can be, and YOU'RE the one that swapped him for Goofy!"

"We can't play the same way," Yukari clarified. "I'm too impatient and just want to whack things. You're more cautious but running away won't save you in the harder fights! You need to break this habit!"

Nyamo looked down at the controller. "You're right….."

XXXXX

**"GAAAAAAH!"**

"Oh come ON!" Nyamo growled. "It only had half a bar left! Should I go for the gambit and use Mickey?"

"Worth a shot!"

So Mickey came back to the fray, and this time, Nyamo tried to squeeze in more combos. If Mickey "dying" didn't cause a game over, it was essentially free damage. She managed to push the monster far away from Sora's respawn, as well.

"Potion!"

Sora jumped back in with more combos, and the monster was on the ropes. Thinking fast, Nyamo used his Limit with Beast. "I'm invincible when I do this!"

"Good catch!"

A few more combos, some dodges, and eventually….

 **"IT'S OVER!"** Sora's finisher had won the battle, scoring some neat bonuses for him and his whole party. Unlike the previous game, bosses didn't give EXP, not that it would matter.

"I….I did it!" Nyamo cheered. "Finally, this world is done!"

"Good on you, Nyamo! So let's keep going! Speedrun this bad boy!"

But her friend merely saved and shut the game off. "No thanks. I have to make some lesson plans for tomorrow. Why don't we just have some tea and chat?"

* * *

"Do you think it's weird we're….playing video games with our students?"

Yukari sipped her mug, winced, and dished in more sugar. "Weird? The only weird thing is acting like playing video games is like showing off a fetish. They're fun! And why don't we have some fun with them before they graduate?"

"I suppose…."

"I even had this really cool idea! See, there's this speedrunning circuit in America, and I submitted a Majora's Mask run to compete! If it gets chosen, I want to perform it with Chiyo and all them commentating!"

Nyamo spat out her tea, all over her houseplant. "That's completely nuts! When is this?"

"Oh, late January."

"Winter break is over by then! And you can't just take your students to some convention in America!"

"I can if I advertise it as some kind of big cultural project!"

"Uh huh, and would you REALLY want to watch over more than 20 students in a noisy convention with a bunch of gaming…."

"….nerds?" Yukari slumped. "Damn it. Oh well, I still need my run to get accepted. Maybe I can pretend to be sick or something."

"I'll just tell the principal…."

"Oh great! Then I'LL just tell the whole school about your love letter…."

That got her to shut up about _that._ "Yukari, how many people even try out for this thing?"

"I dunno, a couple hundred?"

"And HOW many actually get to the runs at the event?"

"…shut up, Nyamo."

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yep, it's exactly what you think. I realize it'd be a little too contrived for it to actually happen, but I still have a way for it to write it ; ). As for the story in general, it's easy just to keep going but I think I'll stop somewhere between...40 and 50? I dunno. Feel free to throw out more suggestions.
> 
> Next Game - Super Mario Maker [Chiyo, Tomo, Sakaki, Osaka, Chihiro]


	26. Super Mario Maker

Christmas came and went for Chiyo and her family, and one of the gifts she got was a curious Wii U title, with a builder Mario on the front.

"For me?"

"You enjoy that Mario series, right Chiyo? The clerk at the store said it was the definitive 2D title, with a level designer to boot!"

Chiyo looked from the game's cover to her father. "A-Are you sure? I'm….going to be finishing high school soon…."

"You're still young, Chiyo. You shouldn't rush into adulthood either," said her mother. "You've been smiling so much these days, all because of your time with your friends!"

"We were a little worried for you when you enrolled, but…..we're proud of you. Even with all this leisure, your grades as still amazing as ever!"

"Oh, Mother, Father….I love you so much!" She hugged them both, and her dog as well. "And this gives me a good idea…."

* * *

"YAY! We're going to Chiyo-chan's house, we're going to Chiyo-chan's house!"

"Hey Tomo, do you think it's gonna snow today?"

Clad in earmuffs and jackets, some of the girls were heading over to their friend's house for the newest rotation. Walking alongside them was Sakaki and Chihiro.

"So Kaorin isn't grounded anymore?"

"Nah, but she still needs to be careful….."

XXXXX

"WE'RE HERE!" Tomo loudly announced when she opened the door. She kicked off her boots and practically dashed into the living room. "Let's play, let's play!"

Chiyo was working on the Gamepad. Soon she finished the design, and hurried to submit her level online. "Good afternoon, everyone! Are you ready to play some Mario?"

"Hey, that's Mario Maker!" said Chihiro. "That game's pretty fun. You can play other levels people made all over the world!"

The girls took off the rest of their winter clothing, and Chiyo hurried to get them all tea. The game was underway!

"Okay….what should we do first, everyone? Make a level, or play one?"

Tomo practically snatched the Gamepad from her hands. "Make one, duh! We're going to make the most difficult, soul-crushing level in existence!"

"WHAT?! But….I only make fun puzzle levels…." Chiyo had a fondness for using doors and keys.

"Don't worry, it won't take me long! Watch and learn, ladies. The MASTER builder has arrived."

She selected the classic SMB1 style and proceeded to make a straight horizontal path to the goal. But then she littered the screen with Thwomps, Lakitus, Bob-ombs, and Bullet Bills. It was….a honest mess. Yet she looked proud regardless.

"Uh, Tomo, you can't submit the level unless you beat it yourself…."

"Easy!"

_25 tries later-_

XXXXX

"COME ON! How fast do you want me to move?!"

Chiyo tapped her shoulder. "Maybe someone else can give it a try….?"

"Oh fine! Here!" She gave the Gamepad to Sakaki. "Wow us, Miss Sakaki!"

"Alright then….hmm." Sakaki hadn't played the game before, so she had to take some time learning the UI of selecting tools. She switched to SMW style, and the first thing she did was input a Yoshi egg. Unlike Tomo's linear design, Sakaki made sure to elevate and depress platforms to make things a little more interesting. A few moving platforms here, a P switch there….

"This game sure makes you use yer brain," Osaka observed. "This how Miyamoto and all them make levels?"

"Actually…." Chiyo pulled out a booklet from the shelf. "They designed them tile by tile on sheets of graph paper!" Inside were schematics of the original 1-1, with notes from Miyamoto and Tezuka. "Every piece is designed so carefully!"

 _Carefully…._ Sakaki liked that idea. She placed a few enemies, but not in spots where it would be too unfair to the player. To her, above all else, Nintendo games were fun, not sadistic challenges.

For good measure, she had a lone block with a 1-Up!.

"Osaka, would you like to try my level?"

"Sure thing, Miss Sakaki! Wow….does this make me your builder apprentice?"

"Um…yes?"

"NO FAIR, OSAKA!" Tomo shouted.

XXXXX

Osaka giggled as she played through the level. It was just her speed. Yoshi was a good way to get through the enemies, but there were lower paths to grab him in case the player lost him. Even when she had a Fire Flower, she was content to have Mario ride his friend to victory.

"Get the bar at the goal!" Chihiro said. "That's how you get more points!"

"Whee!" Osaka cleared the level. "That was fun, Miss Sakaki! But we gotta come up with a good level name."

"Well….you're the apprentice," Sakaki smiled, "why don't you name it?"

"Sure thing!"

Tomo and Sakaki both nearly spat out their tea at the title: **"Miss Sakaki's Wild Ride"**

* * *

Next up was Chihiro, who decided on the SMB3 style. She, having already owned the game, was putting down objects and platforms much faster than Sakaki did.

"Whoa! How often do you play this?" asked Tomo.

"Eh, only when I'm bored."

Already she had three vertical platforms with a scaling difficulty: the top had more coins but also more foes. The bottom only had three Goombas but only five coins. From there, Mario would take a platform track where Hammer Bros. would attack from Lakitu clouds.

"Chihiro, are you…..bored often?" Sakaki wondered.

"No, why?"

Then came a gauntlet of Paratroopas Mario had to jump through to clear a rather sizable gap. Yoshis weren't available in this particular style, either.

"Goodness! How many levels have you made?" Chiyo asked.

"Eh, about 30, but who's counting, right?"

Ten more minutes later, it was complete. She wanted Chiyo to try it. But after falling to her death three times told her this wasn't going to be an easy level. She timed her jumps carefully, and yet something else would cause her to lose a life.

"Hard, huh?"

"Y-Yes…."

Tomo was getting anxious. "Lemme try! Please, please!"

_50 tries later-_

XXXXX

"ARRRRRRRRRGH I FINISHED IT!"

After the 25th death, the girls had decided to make popcorn and watch Tomo's growing frustration. She wouldn't let someone beat it before her, so they had to wait.

"Great! You name it Tomo!" Chihiro laughed.

She typed on the ingame keyboard **"Chihiro is the Devil".**

"Change that name, please! This is uploaded from my own console, I don't want people to get the wrong idea!"

"Yeah I'm Shinto," said the devil rather smugly.

Then the girls opted to try a different mode - the 100 Mario challenge. With 100 lives, the goal was to navigate a gauntlet of levels made by other players. Just to be safe, Chiyo picked the Normal difficulty.

* * *

**Level #1 - Go! Go! Go! Mario! (Osaka)**

It was a scrolling stage where time was only 100 seconds. Mushrooms were scattered throughout to give Mario momentum to press on.

"Hurry up Osaka!"

"Shoot! There was a 1-up there…" She turned back and was crushed by the scroll.

* * *

**Level #3 - Gotta Catch Them All! (Tomo)**

"Whoooa, it's Pokemon themed!"  
Mario hit a mystery mushroom that turned him into Pikachu, complete with sound effects. It also acted as an equivalent of a Super Mushroom. She jumped through a Pokeball made of coins, where the next block turned Mario into Bulbasaur.

"So cute!" Chiyo exclaimed. "Don't you agree, Miss Sakaki? Miss Sakaki-"

She was already jotting down notes for her next level.

* * *

**Level #5 - UR SO BAD LOL (Chihiro)**

"What the…..is this title in English? I don't get it, what's a LOL?"

"Maybe it's short for lolicon!" Tomo guessed. "Ah, did Kimura make this stage?"

"Don't he like high school girls?"

"Semantics, Osaka!"

"Oh wait, Chiyo's young-looking and a high schooler! So the level's for her!"

"Me?! I don't think he even plays video games! And besides, the level's just making fun of the player! I thought Normal wouldn't have these…"

"Guys? It's done."

"Huh?"

While the level *looked* impossible with a myriad of enemies clogging up the screen, there was purposely a hidden Starman….and the level was less than a meter long.

* * *

**Level #9 - Yoshi Safari! (Sakaki)**

Already Sakaki liked the level. It was in NMB style, and there was plenty of enemies for Yoshi to gobble up. The level seemed tailor made with him in mind. It had a few nasty enemies, like some Chain Chomps, but she enjoyed very second of the "adventure".

"Ah….I like this level. I wonder what the next one will be…."

* * *

**Level #10 - Yoshi's Sacrifice (Sakaki)**

"…Osaka, your turn."

* * *

**Level #13 - Super Sonic Style! (Tomo)**

A mystery mushroom turned Mario into his Mega Drive rival, but a Starman stimulated the effect of his golden super form. Faster and faster he went, plowing through enemies, and Tomo kept the momentum going through the jumps.

"Yeah! This is my kind of le-aww, it's over already!"

"Sonic's too fast…." Osaka whispered.

* * *

**Level #16 - Gorilla and String Bean (Chiyo)**

Since it was the last level of the gauntlet, the level template was a castle theme. But the real theme of the level was apparent by the strange mushroom in the first block, it turned Mario into….

"HUH?! Chitoge Kirisaki from that Nisekoi manga?!"

Complete with a bell chime for a taunt.

"I don't understand….." Sakaki thought for a few seconds to see if she ever had an amiibo. "I thought these were reserved for video game characters…."

"Well nevertheless, I have to keep going!" Chiyo hurried past some fire bars, then ducked below a platform with Hammer Bros.

She jumped over five consecutive lava pits, being careful not to lose the Chitoge costume. There had to be a reason why the designer wanted you to be her, right?  
Although she was oblivious to the coin patterns spelling out Raku Ichijo - Chitoge's love interest - in rough-looking kanji.

"She's doing it!" Osaka then hid behind Sakaki. "That Bowser's coming up now…."

Chitoge jumped to dodge the Koopa King's fire balls with utmost care and precision. Chiyo quickly moved and pulled the axe to make him fall into the lava.

"YEAH! WE WON!"

"Y'know, it's not the weirdest costume for Mario Maker. You can be Shaun the Sheep, some American movie or something," Chihiro noted. "Should we try the Expert Mode?"

"Maybe we can do it, together!" Chiyo's eyes were shining. "Let's see what the first one is!"

* * *

**Level #1 - Kaizo Mario**

The girls lost 99 of their lives in only 20 minutes.

**FIN**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, there actually is a Nisekoi costume, and fun fact - one of my own levels appears here. ;)
> 
> Next game - Tomb Raider [Tomo, Kaorin, Chiyo, and Yomi]


End file.
